It has been said that learning has no finish line. Nowhere is that truer than in the medical field. For doctors and other medical personnel, ongoing education is essential.
Effectively attaining that education, however, is a significant challenge. Medical professionals seeking to stay up-to-date in their field must pay attention to an endless stream of research on medical conditions and processes. In addition, medical technology is ever-evolving, creating a demand for ongoing training on a variety of new tools.
“Staying up-to-date on best practices can be overwhelming for medical professionals, regardless of their field or the responsibilities they have,” explained Roy Bejarano, CEO and co-founder of SCALE Healthcare. “To fill the gap, the healthcare industry needs to step in and partner with medical personnel in the area of education and training.”
“The healthcare industry is uniquely positioned to provide valuable educational resources to medical personnel,” Roy said. “Healthcare managers are as well-equipped as anyone to unearth, organize, and share practical lessons and tangible strategies with the potential to improve patient care.”
The Barriers to Effective Education
Staying up-to-date takes time, which is something that few medical personnel have to spare. Doctors and nurses work long shifts that are filled with high-stress tasks. In addition, the extended stress brought to the medical field by the Covid-19 pandemic led to an exodus among medical personnel. Recent reports have described staffing shortages at healthcare facilities as a top patient safety concern in the US. Those who remain serving in the healthcare field are doing more than ever, leaving even less time for focusing on ongoing education.
Determining topics that are important for those in various medical roles is another factor that makes ongoing education challenging. Providing effective medical care involves managing a complicated mix of expertise on health issues, treatment options, regulatory obligations, and insurance procedures, to name just a few. If new information is not strategically sorted, evaluated, and distributed to the right personnel, what is important can get lost among that which is irrelevant.
“There’s no lack of subject matter when it comes to what can be included in medical education,” said Roy. “What is needed are mechanisms that can deliver precisely relevant information in a way that is readily accessible and efficient.”
Ways to Boost the Impact of Education
Data is one key to driving a more efficient model for ongoing medical education. The data gathered in modern healthcare management provides insights on a wide variety of topics. By analyzing data, healthcare managers are able to determine patterns related to the patients being seen, the conditions being treated, and the effectiveness of treatments, among other things.
“This data can help healthcare managers to pinpoint the most relevant topics for training,” Roy explained. “One-size-fits-all is not the optimal way to approach training. By making data-driven decisions about training, healthcare managers can make sure the medical personnel they oversee continue their education in a way that is efficient and effective.”
Technology is another key for enhancing the effectiveness of education. The same technological advancements that have streamlined the processes for customer engagement and empowered remote patient access can be leveraged to make training more accessible and convenient. Healthcare professionals have played a key role in implementing this technology, providing them with insights that can allow them to leverage it for education and training.
“Overall, the healthcare industry can improve education for medical personnel because they can ensure that the education is valuable,” explaied Roy. “When education and training is relevant, insightful, and delivered in an efficient way, it is easy for medical personnel to see it as an empowering resource that is worth the time and effort. Healthcare organizations that provide that type of education elevate the performance of healthcare operations.”
The author, Roy Bejarano is the Co-Founder and CEO of SCALE Healthcare. SCALE provides both the broadest and deepest range of solutions available to healthcare management teams today.
