ArticleBMC public health2025
Considerations for adapting digital competencies and training approaches to the public health workforce: an interpretive description of practitioners' perspectives in Canada.
Article in BMC public health, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers.
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Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed.
- Digital and data capabilities for sexual and reproductive health: a participatory interdisciplinary approach to workforce transformation.BMC health services research · 2026Article
- Mapping digital public health training: are we preparing the European workforce?Frontiers in public health · 2026Review
- AI and algorithmic literacy among health workers: a scoping review through a digital health literacy lens.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- The Public Health Communication Competency Framework: Results from a multi-method and consensus-building process.Canadian journal of public health = Revue canadienne de sante publique · 2025Article
- Building the Workforce's Capacity to Support the Digital Transformation of Public Health: Environmental Scan of Training Programs for Digital Technologies in Public Health.JMIR public health and surveillance · 2025Article
- Opportunities and Challenges for an Organizational Digital Public Health Strategy in a Provincial Public Health Program in Canada: Qualitative Description of Practitioner Perspectives.JMIR public health and surveillance · 2025Article
- Instruments to assess the digital health competencies of healthcare professionals: a scoping review.Frontiers in public health · 2025Article
- Post-pandemic era: global trends, benefits, and barriers in integrating artificial intelligence into public health education.Frontiers in public health · 2025Review
- The double-edged algorithm: A rapid review exploring the trustworthy and responsible use of generative AI in public health.Digital healthReview
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
10 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundWidespread digital transformation necessitates developing digital competencies for public health practice. Given work in 2024 to update Canada's public health core competencies, there are opportunities to consider digital competencies. In our previous research, we identified digital competency and training recommendations within the literature. In this study, we explored public health practitioners' experiences and perspectives on adapting identified digital competencies and training recommendations for Canada.
methodsBetween November and December 2023, we conducted an interpretive description using four focus groups with 19 public health practitioners working in regional and federal health authorities across Canada, with at least 3 years' experience in current roles and experience using digital technologies in practice. We explored practitioners' experiences using digital technologies and sought their opinions on how digital competency recommendations previously identified could be adapted to Canada's context. To generate deep insights of practitioners' subjective experiences and perspectives, we analyzed verbatim transcripts using Braun and Clarke's reflexive thematic analysis.
resultsWe identified three main themes: a) public health systems must evolve to support new digital competencies; b) strengthen the basics before extending towards digital competencies; and c) focus on building general digital competencies with options for specialization where necessary. Findings emphasized matching workforce digital competencies to public health system capabilities and meaningfully integrating digital competencies within existing curricula. Such integration can consider how digital technologies change current public health practice to ensure practitioners are better able to address contemporary public health problems. Findings demonstrated roles for specialized digital programs as resources for learning within health systems and emphasized hands-on real-world training approaches.
conclusionWe need integrated, systems-focused approaches to digital competencies cutting across the current public health curriculum, while creating space for specialized digital public health competencies and roles. Further research is needed to understand requirements for enacting these recommendations in practice.
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