A need to ‘uplift entire workforce, not just early adopters’

Digital health is becoming increasingly embedded in clinical practice and system-wide reform, but levels of capability within Australia’s primary healthcare workforce remain uneven, holding back opportunities to reap the benefits digital health technologies can bring.
 
This is noted in the Australian Digital Health Agency’s National Digital Health Capability Action Plan, which sets out initiatives to reach standard capability frameworks and resources, as well as plans to arm the health workforce with ‘a connected, digitally-enabled future’.

An upcoming Australasian Institute of Digital Health ‘Primary Care, Digitally Connected’ conference aims to support a ‘modern, connected and digitally capable’ primary care workforce, by exploring how digital health can be adopted and better supported.

Dr Janice Tan is a GP and member of the RACGP Expert Committee – Practice Technology and Management (REC–PTM), who will sit on an expert panel representing the college at the conference.
 
She told newsGP that without targeted investment in workforce capability, the benefits of digital health may not be fully realised.
 
‘Digital health is not just about implementing new systems, it’s about ensuring the people using them are confident, capable and supported,’ she said.
 
‘We need to uplift the entire workforce, not just the early adopters.’
 
Alongside leaders from other primary health organisations on the expert panel, Dr Tan will discuss digital readiness and capability in the health workforce, focusing on pain points and actions needed to boost digital literacy in primary care.
 
These actions include tailored training, ongoing professional development, and leadership support to enable a culture of digital readiness.
 
Dr Tan also highlights the need for strategies to support those who may be hesitant or under-resourced to adopt digital health.
 
‘General practice is at the frontline of healthcare,’ she said.
 
‘If we want to deliver safe, efficient, and patient-centred care, we must ensure that GPs and practice teams have the digital skills to match.’
 
The conference program also features sessions on the role of policy and funding mechanisms in supporting a digitally-capable landscape, and new models of care powered by digital health and emerging risks.
 
Dr Tan recognises that while a cohort of the healthcare sector demonstrates expertise in digital health tools and systems, the majority remain at ‘varying stages of readiness’, with some embracing new digital tools, but others still relying on paper-based processes and outdated communication methods.
 
A recent newsGP poll revealed that the majority (65%) of respondents never use conversational AI tools – such as ChatGPT, Gemini, or Copilot – within their general practice, while 10% report they rarely use it, and 8% report always using it.
 
Elsewhere, a recent review of healthcare professionals’ and patients’ understanding and trust in digital healthcare is ‘often poorly measured’.
 
Joining Dr Tan as a speaker at the conference is Dr Toni Weller, GP and REC–PTM member, for a discussion on ‘Commissioning in primary care for a digitally enabled sector’.
 
Dr Weller will explore the opportunities and challenges of new commissioning models, the importance of prioritising outcomes, enabling adoption of new technology, and fostering collaboration across the healthcare sector.
 
‘Primary Health Networks [PHNs] are uniquely positioned to influence how care is delivered locally,’ she said.
 
‘As demand grows for smarter, more connected healthcare, evolving commissioning models will be key.
 
‘By focusing on system integration, innovation, and outcomes, PHNs can unlock the full potential of digital health and support a more adaptive, tech-enabled primary care ecosystem that meets the needs of both communities and providers.’
 
The ‘Primary Care, Digitally Connected’ conference takes place on Tuesday 21 October in Sydney, with registrations now open.
 
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