Examining the relevance of competency-based digital health postgraduate program for capacity building in Malaysia

There is an urgent need to develop a master’s program in Digital Health in Malaysia’s medical schools to produce and meet the demands of qualified professionals in the digital health industry. This study aims to assess the relevance of the Master of Digital Health program for capacity building and its suitability according to age, gender, nationality, and type of organization. This research was intended to understand employability and sponsorship availability from employers for a career in digital health. An online survey consisted of 14 questions on sociodemographic information and opinions of program relevancy, program duration, program coverage, learning outcomes, sponsorship availability from employers, and willingness to employ digital health graduates. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to explore relationships among sociodemographic variables and program relevancy and learning outcomes. Overall, the proposed program received a high percentage of agreement in terms of program relevance, course structure and duration (i.e., twelve months). The program’s learning outcomes were deemed suitable across gender, nationality, age group, and type of organization. There is a need to have a postgraduate education program that is competency-based to produce Digital Health experts who can lead digital transformation in healthcare.