Terveydenhuollon työntekijöiden eri sukupolvien välinen digitaalinen osaaminen

Authors

• Reetta-Maria Uljas Research Unit of Health Sciences and Technology, University of Oulu, Oulu
• Kristina Mikkonen Research Unit of Health Sciences and Technology, University of Oulu, Oulu
• Mira Hammarén Research Unit of Health Sciences and Technology, University of Oulu, Oulu
• Anne Oikarinen Research Unit of Health Sciences and Technology, University of Oulu, Oulu
• Maria Kääriäinen Research Unit of Health Sciences and Technology, University of Oulu, Oulu
• Outi Kanste Research Unit of Health Sciences and Technology, University of Oulu, Oulu
• Erika Jarva Research Unit of Health Sciences and Technology, University of Oulu, Oulu

DOI: https://doi.org/10.23996/fjhw.136001

Abstract

The current reform of social and healthcare services and structure aims to limit the growth of costs and promote access to services. Social and healthcare services are increasingly being developed to be more customer-oriented, timely, effective and efficient through digitalization. The changes have a particular impact on the working methods and content of healthcare workers, as digitalization of services requires digital competence. Previous research suggests that a worker's age and year of graduation affect their ability to use digital systems, with digital competence declining from the age of 45 onwards. The purpose of this study was to explore the generational differences in the digital competence of healthcare workers.

The study followed a cross-sectional study design. The survey data (n=817) was collected through an electronic questionnaire from healthcare professionals in nine healthcare organizations nationwide. The survey included background questions and questions about the respondent's self-assessed digital competence and factors affecting digital competence on a four-point scale. The data was statistically analyzed using the SPSS software.

Based on the results, it can be concluded that the Z and Y generations experience stronger digital competence than the X generation and older generations. The older generations rate the support of factors influencing digital competence as more significant than the younger generations. In health care, it would be important in the future to target competence development methods, considering the differences in digital competence between generations. Organizations and work communities should therefore work actively and systematically to identify the digital competence needs of different generations, so that digital services and solutions can be adopted more openly in the future.