Healthcare is rapidly evolving. Electronic health records, telehealth, health data systems and digitally enabled models of care are now integral to everyday practice across hospitals, clinics and community health services.
For the health professionals of tomorrow, being ready for the workplace will require more than strong clinical knowledge. Graduates will also need the confidence and capability to use digital technologies safely and effectively, in ways that support person-centred care.
Until now, however, Australian universities have not had a nationally consistent framework to guide digital health education in pre-registration health degrees.
Through its leadership within the Australian Council of Senior Academic Leaders in Digital Health (ACSALDH), Charles Sturt University, alongside the University of Queensland and the Australian Catholic University, developed the Digital Health Train the Trainer Toolkit. The Embedding Digital Health Education into Health Degrees project, funded by the Australian Digital Health Agency, developed the toolkit as a nationally available resource that assists educators to embed digital health capabilities into health degrees across Australia.
Professor Kerryn Butler-Henderson, Professor of Digital Health and Head of the School of Nursing, Paramedicine and Healthcare Sciences, co-led the toolkit’s development with Professor Clair Sullivan of the University of Queensland and Associate Professor Stephen Guinea of Australian Catholic University.
Charles Sturt contributed leadership and expertise across project governance, stakeholder consultation, curriculum design, development of learning outcomes, evaluation and pilot testing before the toolkit’s national release.
The toolkit was shaped through extensive national consultation to identify the digital health capabilities that future health professionals will need and to ensure the resource could be adapted across disciplines and university settings.
The project brought together the Australian Digital Health Agency, the Australian Council of Senior Academic Leaders in Digital Health, the Digital Health Cooperative Research Centre, and 24 participating organisations, including 17 Australian universities.
Academic leaders, educators, government representatives, industry experts and digital health researchers contributed through focus groups, expert panels and stakeholder consultations. The toolkit was then piloted across universities, with Dr Salma Arabi, Head of Discipline (Digital Health), leading the pilot at CSU.
This collaborative approach helped build a shared foundation for digital health education while recognising that universities and health professions need flexibility in how they apply it.
The toolkit presents eight nationally agreed digital health learning outcomes, supported by evidence-informed learning plans, teaching resources and practical guidance.
It is designed for educators teaching pre-registration health degrees and can be adapted for nursing, medicine, allied health, pharmacy, paramedicine, psychology, and other pre-registration health professions.
Rather than requiring universities to introduce separate digital health subjects, the toolkit helps educators integrate digital health capabilities into existing curricula. This is particularly important for health degrees, where programs are already highly structured and educators may have limited experience teaching quickly developing digital health concepts.
The result is a practical and adaptable pathway to strengthen what is already being taught, address gaps, and create greater consistency in how future health professionals are prepared.
Charles Sturt is now adopting a staged approach to embedding the toolkit across its pre-registration health programs.
Implementation is being led by Dr Salma Arabi, Head of Discipline in Digital Health, who is working with Course Directors across the University to identify where programs already address the eight learning outcomes and where further development may be needed.
The approach recognises that many courses already cover elements of digital health. The focus is therefore on strengthening and connecting the existing curriculum rather than adding unnecessary stand-alone content.
Charles Sturt plans to embed the first two foundational learning outcomes across its pre-registration health degrees by 2027. Two further outcomes will then be introduced each year progressively, with all eight expected to be embedded by the end of 2030.
The learning outcomes cover foundational capabilities in health data, electronic health records, telehealth, privacy and security, digital professionalism, and digitally enabled models of care.
“Digital health is no longer optional in healthcare practice,” said Dr Arabi.
“Today’s students will graduate into workplaces where digital technologies, health data and technology-enabled models of care are integral to everyday clinical practice.”
“This toolkit provides a nationally agreed framework to help universities prepare future health professionals with the capabilities to deliver safe, effective and person-centred care in an increasingly digital healthcare system.”
The initiative is especially important for rural and regional communities, where modern digital technologies can help overcome distance, expand access to specialist services, and improve continuity and coordination of care.
From the outset of their careers, graduates entering regional healthcare services will increasingly be expected to use telehealth platforms, electronic health records, data systems and emerging digital tools with confidence.
By embedding these capabilities across its health degrees, Charles Sturt is helping prepare graduates to contribute efficiently in the communities and health services that need them.
“At Charles Sturt, this work aligns closely with our commitment to industry-informed education and to preparing graduates to thrive in their careers and communities,” Dr Arabi said.
“We are proud to have helped lead this national initiative and to support the integration of digital health capabilities across health degrees, strengthening the future workforce, particularly in regional Australia.”
The toolkit provides universities with a consistent, practical approach to building digital health capability across the future workforce. Its anticipated impact includes:
For Charles Sturt, progress will also be demonstrated by the staged implementation of all eight learning outcomes across its pre-registration health programs by the end of 2030.
Early feedback has stressed the value of providing educators with practical resources, clearly defined learning outcomes and a structured pathway to incorporate digital health into existing courses.
Charles Sturt’s contribution ranges from helping to shape the national framework to embedding it within the University’s health degrees.
Through this work, the University is translating digital health expertise into practical education to support graduates, healthcare services and communities across Australia.
As healthcare continues to evolve, the toolkit will help ensure that future health professionals are equipped to deliver safe, effective and person-centred care across regional, rural and metropolitan Australia.
Charles Sturt University aligns our research, policies, procedures, and other work with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These are the most relevant SDGs for this initiative.
Digital health is now part of everyday healthcare, but universities have lacked a consistent national framework for teaching these essential skills. Charles Sturt researchers and educators have helped develop a new toolkit to prepare future health professionals for safe, effective and technology-enabled care.
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