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Oulun yliopiston väitöskirjat

Digital health competence of healthcare professionals in healthcare settings University

ISBN-10:	978-952-62-4092-3
Kieli:	englanti
Kustantaja:	Oulun yliopisto
Laitos:	Faculty of Medicine
Sidosasu:	pehmeäkantinen
Sijainti:	Print Tietotalo
Sivumäärä:	180
Tekijät:	Jarva, Erika,

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The aim of the study was to describe healthcare professionals’ digital health competence areas and explain factors associated with it in digitalised healthcare. The study included three phases: a qualitative descriptive study, instrument development and testing and a cross-sectional study. In the first phase, healthcare professionals (n=20) from different healthcare settings were interviewed between spring 2019 and summer 2020 to discover their perceptions of digital health competence and aspects associated with it. The data was analysed with inductive content analysis. The results of the first phase were used as a theoretical base in the development of two instruments. The instruments were developed to measure the self-evaluated 1) digital health competence and 2) aspects associated with it. In the second phase, the psychometric properties of the instruments were assessed. Data was collected electronically from healthcare professionals (n=817) from nine healthcare organisations in Finland in spring-summer 2022. The instruments’ content validity was evaluated with the CVI method and face validity was evaluated with a pilot study. Exploratory factor analysis was used to determine the construct validity of the instruments and internal consistency was assessed with Cronbach’s alpha coefficient. In the third phase, healthcare professionals’ digital health competence profiles were identified and factors associated with digital health competence were explored by using the data collected in phase two. Healthcare professionals perceived that digital health competence is a diverse entity, and specifically, educational and organisational factors are associated with it. The developed instruments were evaluated to attain good validity. Profile analysis detected three profiles which represent low, intermediate and high digital health competence. All three detected educational and organisational factors had statistical significance on digital health competence. Age, graduation year, professional background, clinical working environment and amount of patient work were also statistically significantly associated with digital health competence. The study presents new knowledge on healthcare professionals’ mutual digital health competence areas and how different factors are associated with digital health competence areas. The results can be used in predicting, defining, evaluating and developing healthcare professionals’ digital health competence and associated factors and in designing digital health competence development methods.

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