At a discussion about healthcare workers’ digital skills in Austria last week, Sara Cerdas, a member of the European Parliament and trained physician described her own experience. As a doctor working in Portugal’s national system, she had noticed generational disparities among medical professionals. Opportunities for upskilling were non-existent, Cerdas added.

In Portugal, better, more digitally-centred training is needed. “There’s a lot to be improved but there’s also a lot that has been done in the last ten years,” she said.

Across Europe gaps persist within countries, between regions and even across different professions, said Matthias Wismar, programme manager at the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies, which co-organised the event with the European Health Forum Gastein. “Very often in many European countries digital tools are actually available, but they are not taken up to the extent we would like to see because there are large skills gaps in the health workforce.”

Creating a digital service infrastructure

With healthcare systems a responsibility of member states, policymakers are posing the question – what is the EU’s role in closing this divide? 

A number of major European initiatives are on the horizon, which will make digital skills increasingly necessary in healthcare. The European Health Data Space aims to promote the exchange of patient data and create a digital service infrastructure that supports research and treatment. One goal is that this will reduce the bureaucratic burden on workers, Cerdas pointed out. “With this further digitalisation expected and upcoming in the healthcare sector we must require that health professionals do have the opportunity to upgrade their competences and skills in order to be prepared for all these different digital tools that aim to simplify and ease their work,” she said.

The EU is developing several policy strands to nurture health workers’ digital skills within its broader approach to digital transformation, according to Dirk Van den Steen, deputy head of unit at the directorate general for health and food safety. The Pact for Skills, adopted in 2020, aims to promote digital learning across all sectors of the economy, including health and care. A blueprint was also put in place for a digital skills strategy in health and care.

Digital tools can help reduce workforce demand

Isabelle Zablit-Schmitz, from the French Ministry of Solidarity and health, suggested that the arrival of new digital tools meant that digital training and sharing of best practices must be supported at a European level. But this could touch on sensitive governance issues, Wismar thought. “To what extent will European regulation then inform national curricula or national systems of continuous professional development?”

As they grapple with these questions, policymakers hope that digital tools help address the challenges of the future. “We know that demand for the workforce is only set to increase,” said Van den Steen. “So—hoping that if we have the tools and the proper skillsets and up-skilling this will help alleviate the burden.”