The UOC's new University Master's Degree in eHealth was presented at the eSalut. Reptes i necessitats actuals dels professionals de la salut (eHealth: Current challenges for and needs of healthcare professionals) symposium.
Healthcare professionals are lacking the digital skills necessary to work in today's increasingly technological society. This was shown by a survey carried out by the Catalan University Quality Assurance Agency and presented by its director Martí Casadesús at the seminar eSalut: Reptes i necessitats actuals dels professionals de la salut (eHealth: Current challenges for and needs of healthcare professionals) symposium, which took place on Thursday, 27 September, at the Movistar Centre in Barcelona and was organized by the UOC's Faculty of Health Sciences, with the support of the eHealth Center.
The survey reveals that technological skills are among the most sought after in doctors, nurses and pharmacists. However, according to the data presented by Casadesús, these professionals' average score in technological skills is 4.7 out of 10. This, he said, was “an unsatisfactory level for employers”.
Marta Aymerich, Executive President of the eHealth Center, said that “whether or not health professionals have the necessary digital skills is determined by their digital expertise in other spheres of life. However, the courses available to acquire these skills are insufficient.” She went on to say that “a group such as health professionals, who are used to constantly refreshing their training, should have more opportunities to acquire the necessary knowledge in this field. The UOC's Master's Degree in eHealth seeks to make up for this deficiency.”
Carme Carrión, Director of the University Master's Degree in eHealth, explained that “the training received by these professionals has to change. Skills such as communication, flexibility and adaptation to change, together with training in digital skills, are essential and are not being developed sufficiently in traditional university training.”
The master's degree, which started in mid-October, “has been designed to include the needs listed by employers and includes training in data science, personal empowerment, and ethical and legal issues related with health digitization, strategies for assessing impacts or improving the implementation of e-health interventions, among other disciplines,” she said.
Technology will change the care model
In turn, Pilar Garcia-Lorda, Dean of the UOC's Faculty of Health Sciences, said that “professionals' CVs have not evolved at the same pace as health digitization. One of the main challenges is anticipating future training needs in healthcare.”
Albert Barberà, the Government of Catalonia's director of Health Research and Innovation, said that “technology will force us to change our care model. But there are skills such as communication and co-creation that do not depend on technology. One of the unmet needs of modern healthcare is doctor-patient communication. We must train professionals to put the patient at the centre of the treatment.”
Joan Comella, CEO of the Vall d'Hebron Research Institute, member of the eHealth Center's Advisory Board and speaker at the symposium, explained that “the new technologies are radically changing how we approach medicine and research. Today's laboratories are run by professionals who are analysing big data. We cannot even begin to imagine the possibilities offered by technology: we're just seeing the tip of the iceberg.”
Other speakers at the symposium included health sector professionals recognized for their innovative vision within their respective organizations, such as Dr Mònica Moro, communication director at the pharmaceutical company Menarini; Dr Mireia Sans, head of e-health at the COMB (Barcelona Medical Association) and director of the Borrell Primary Care Centre, who explained how they place the patient at the centre with the help of technology; Hartmann Estruch, director of Organization and Information Systems at the Hospital Parc Taulí in Sabadell; and Imma Grau, director of Hospital Clínic's m-Health Observatory, who talked about how they assess digital projects at this Barcelona hospital.