Educators' digital competence in physiotherapy and health professions education: Insights from qualitative interviews

This study seeks to outline the features of digital competences among educators in health professions education and pinpoint areas in need of enhancement.

The transcribed interviews of nine educators in physiotherapy education were coded to align with The European Framework for the Digital Competence of Educators (DigCompEdu), adhering to a step-by-step procedure.

In total, 320 significant units were coded to an individual competence. Three competence areas (Professional engagement, Teaching and learning, and Empowering learners accounted for (94.2%) of the codes, while the three remaining (Digital resources, Assessment, and Facilitating learners' digital competence) for 5.8% of cases. Several individual competences were not identified, across domains and the educators raised skepticism regarding the relevance of digital education for clinical practice.

The study reveals deficiencies in the digital competence of health professions educators, highlighting gaps in strategies to utilize technology in their work and the integration of technologies with clinical skills. Educators exhibit individual-driven rather than collaborative digital professional development, expressing skepticism about technology's efficacy in clinical skills training. The results emphasize the urgent need for comprehensive improvement. Without addressing these issues, health education students may graduate without essential digital skills, hindering their contribution to technology development.