Fostering workforce capacity to maximize opportunities for the digital transformation of public health in Canada (2023)
The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted both the benefits of digital technologies and the challenges faced by the public health workforce in fully utilizing them while maintaining core public health principles. Existing competency frameworks include some relevant skills but fall short in supporting digital transformation. This project aimed to recommend competencies, training approaches, and partnerships for digital public health practice. We conducted a rapid review, scan of training programs, and focus groups with educators and public health practitioners. We identified new competencies in ethical use, governance, and administration of digital data. Most training programs focus on data science and informatics, with a need for transdisciplinary approaches. Some programs focus on a broad range of topics including digital project management, digital health communication and digital determinants of health. Practitioners emphasized advanced digital training, basic digital skills, and system-wide capability improvements.
Partners: Catherine Worthington, UVic; Andre Kushniruk, UVic; Francisco Ibáñez-Carrasco, UofT; Adalsteinn Brown, UofT; Hugh Davies, UBC
Funding: Canadian Institutes of Health Research ($100,000)
Key publications:
- Ramachandran et al. Digital competencies and training approaches to enhance the capacity of practitioners to support the digital transformation of public health: Rapid review of current recommendations. JMIR Public Health and Surveillance, 2024. (article)
- Iyamu I et al. Considerations for adapting digital competencies and training approaches to the public health workforce: an interpretive description of practitioner’s perspectives in Canada. BMC Public Health, 2025. (article)