Healthc Inform Res.  2024 Jan;30(1):83-89. 10.4258/hir.2024.30.1.83.

Fostering Digital Health in Universities: An Experience of the First Junior Scientific Committee of the Brazilian Congress of Health Informatics

• Pantaleao AN
• Mennitti AL
• Brunheroto FB
• Stavis V
• Ricoboni LT
• Castro VAFd
• Ferreira OF
• Lage EM
• Carvalho DR
• Fernandes AMdR
• Gaspar JdS

• KMID: 2551863
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4258/hir.2024.30.1.83

Abstract

Objectives
Digital health (DH) is a revolution driven by digital technologies to improve health. Despite the importance of DH, curricular updates in healthcare university programs are scarce, and DH remains undervalued. Therefore, this report describes the first Junior Scientific Committee (JSC) focusing on DH at a nationwide congress, with the aim of affirming its importance for promoting DH in universities.
Methods
The scientific committee of the Brazilian Congress of Health Informatics (CBIS) extended invitations to students engaged in health-related fields, who were tasked with organizing a warm-up event and a 4-hour session at CBIS. Additionally, they were encouraged to take an active role in a workshop alongside distinguished experts to map out the current state of DH in Brazil.
Results
The warm-up event focused on the topic “Artificial intelligence in healthcare: is a new concept of health about to arise?” and featured remote discussions by three professionals from diverse disciplines. At CBIS, the JSC’s inaugural presentation concentrated on delineating the present state of DH education in Brazil, while the second presentation offered strategies to advance DH, incorporating viewpoints from within and beyond the academic sphere. During the workshop, participants deliberated on the most crucial competencies for future professionals in the DH domain.
Conclusions
Forming a JSC proved to be a valuable tool to foster DH, particularly due to the valuable interactions it facilitated between esteemed professionals and students. It also supports the cultivation of leadership skills in DH, a field that has not yet received the recognition it deserves.

Keyword

Medical Informatics, Medical Education, Telemedicine, Artificial Intelligence, Universities

Figure

• 

  Figure 1 Infographic of the warm-up event at the Brazilian Congress of Health Informatics (CBIS) 2022.

• 

  Figure 2 Junior Scientific Committee participation in the Brazilian Congress of Health Informatics (CBIS) 2022.

• 

  Figure 3 Advantages of creating a Junior Scientific Committee (JSC).

Reference

References

1. World Health Organization. WHO guideline: recommendations on digital interventions for health system strengthening [Internet]. Geneva, Switzerland: World Health Organization;2019. [cited at 2024 Jan 30]. Available from: https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/311941.

2. Thapa S, Nielsen JB, Aldahmash AM, Qadri FR, Leppin A. Willingness to use digital health tools in patient care among health care professionals and students at a university hospital in Saudi Arabia: quantitative cross-sectional survey. JMIR Med Educ. 2021; 7(1):e18590. https://doi.org/10.2196/18590.

3. Alzghaibi H. The gap between bachelor’s degree graduates in health informatics and employer needs in Saudi Arabia. BMC Med Educ. 2023; 23(1):475. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-023-04442-7.

4. Ministry of Health. Brazilian National Digital Health Strategy 2020–2028. [Internet]. Brasilia, Brazil: SUS IT Department, Ministry of Health;2020. [cited at 2024 Jan 30]. Available from: http://bvsms.saude.gov.br/bvs/publicacoes/estrategia_saude_digital_Brasil.pdf.

5. National Research Ethics Commission (Comissao Nacional de Etica em Pesquisa). National Health Council (CNS) Resolution no 510/2016 [Internet]. Brasilia, Brazil: National Research Ethics Commission;2016. [cited at 2024 Jan 30]. Available from: https://conselho.saude.gov.br/resolucoes/2016/Reso510.pdf.

6. Ministry of Health. General Data Protection Law (LGPD) [Internet]. Brasilia, Brazil: Ministry of Health;2019. [cited at 2024 Jan 30]. Available from: https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/_ato2019-2022/2019/lei/l13853.htm.

7. Bichel-Findlay J, Koch S, Mantas J, Abdul SS, Al-Shorbaji N, Ammenwerth E, et al. Recommendations of the International Medical Informatics Association (IMIA) on Education in Biomedical and Health Informatics: second revision. Int J Med Inform. 2023; 170:104908. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijmedinf.2022.104908.

8. Gaspar JD, Motta RA, Marin HD. Digital health competencies: results from the first workshop promoted by SBIS-CBIS2022 [Internet]. Campinas, Brazil: Brazilian Society of Health Informatics (SBIS);2023. [cited at 2024 Jan 11]. Available from: https://zenodo.org/records/7855562.

9. Machleid F, Kaczmarczyk R, Johann D, Balciunas J, Atienza-Carbonell B, von Maltzahn F, et al. Perceptions of digital health education among European medical students: mixed methods survey. J Med Internet Res. 2020; 22(8):e19827. https://doi.org/10.2196/19827.

10. Rohrig R, Stausberg J, Dugas M. Development of national competency-based learning objectives “Medical Informatics” for undergraduate medical education. Methods Inf Med. 2013; 52(3):184–8. https://doi.org/10.3414/ME13-04-0001.

11. McCoy LG, Nagaraj S, Morgado F, Harish V, Das S, Celi LA. What do medical students actually need to know about artificial intelligence? NPJ Digit Med. 2020; 3:86. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41746-020-0294-7.

12. Jimenez G, Spinazze P, Matchar D, Koh Choon Huat G, van der Kleij RM, Chavannes NH, et al. Digital health competencies for primary healthcare professionals: a scoping review. Int J Med Inform. 2020; 143:104260. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijmedinf.2020.104260.

13. Echelard JF, Methot F, Nguyen HA, Pomey MP. Medical student training in ehealth: scoping review. JMIR Med Educ. 2020; 6(2):e20027. https://doi.org/10.2196/20027.

14. Khairat S, Feldman SS, Rana A, Faysel M, Purkayastha S, Scotch M, et al. Foundational domains and competencies for baccalaureate health informatics education. J Am Med Inform Assoc. 2023; 30(10):1599–607. https://doi.org/10.1093/jamia/ocad147.

15. Ahonen O, Kotila J, Melender HL, Saranto K. The biomedical and health informatics recommendation domains in relation to the nurse competence scale categories. Stud Health Technol Inform. 2023; 305:216–9. https://doi.org/10.3233/SHTI230466.

16. Poncette AS, Glauert DL, Mosch L, Braune K, Balzer F, Back DA. Undergraduate medical competencies in digital health and curricular module development: mixed methods study. J Med Internet Res. 2020; 22(10):e22161. https://doi.org/10.2196/22161.

17. Hare AJ, Soegaard Ballester JM, Gabriel PE, Adusumalli S, Hanson CW. Training digital natives to transform healthcare: a 5-tiered approach for integrating clinical informatics into undergraduate medical education. J Am Med Inform Assoc. 2022; 30(1):139–43. https://doi.org/10.1093/jamia/ocac209.

18. Bellazzi R, Cecconi M, Costantino ML, Veltri P. Bioengineering and medical informatics education in MD programs: perspectives from three Italian experiences. Int J Med Inform. 2023; 172:105002. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijmedinf.2023.105002.

19. Quach WT, Le CH, Clark MG, McArthur E, Ancker JS, Gadd CS, et al. Engaging the next generation of physician-informaticians through early exposure to the field: successes and challenges associated with starting a novel clinical informatics interest group. J Am Med Inform Assoc. 2022; 30(1):202–5. https://doi.org/10.1093/jamia/ocac189.