From leadership research to district action: Training the Digital Clinician by Evaluating Health Education and Curriculum Integration New Zealand Psychology and Psychiatry Programs: Mixed Methods Study

AI-assisted editorial implementation guide. Proposed district actions are separate from the original authors’ findings and recommendations. Independent peer review of this guide is not asserted.

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Evidence and transfer

Education-related source: verify which participants, institutions and outcomes were actually studied before district adoption. Source publication type: research-article. License and identity checks do not establish study quality or causality.

Original authors’ abstract, reproduced under the source license:

Abstract Background The importance of digital health education is widely recognized; however, structural and knowledge deficits hinder its effective integration into training and on-the-job upskilling programs. Tackling these challenges will equip clinicians to navigate the fast-evolving digital mental health landscape confidently. Objective This study aims to investigate the prevalence of digital health education and training needs for New Zealand mental health clinicians and trainees, including how psychology and psychiatry teaching programs are including eHealth and digital mental health tools in their curriculums. Methods A mixed method study was conducted between August 2021 and February 2022: (1) a survey of mental health clinicians and trainees investigating existing and desired training in digital mental health tools, (2) follow-up in-depth one-on-one interviews with a subsample of survey participants, and (3) in-depth one-on-one interviews with educators (program or curriculum coordinators) within psychology and psychiatry training programs. Results The study comprised a survey of 118 clinicians, follow-up interviews with 17 clinicians, and interviews with 4 program directors of relevant training programs. The survey results revealed that 75% (n=88) of the clinicians had not received formal digital health training, yet 69% (n=81) had engaged in self-directed learning. Interest in further training was strong, with 83% (n=98) expressing moderate-to-high interest. Two key themes emerged from the clinician interviews: (1) openness to upskilling, reflecting a willingness to learn, and (2) barriers of time and leadership, highlighting challenges in accessing training due to workloads and limited institutional support. From the program director interviews, three themes were identified: (1) curriculum overload, reflecting difficulties incorporating new content into already crowded programs; (2) uncertainty and inconsistency, with educators unsure about the scope and delivery of digital mental health education; and (3) growth and future potential, highlighting optimism about integrating digital health training into curricula. Conclusions The findings reveal a pressing gap in formal digital health training for clinicians despite widespread interest and enthusiasm for upskilling. Key barriers—time constraints, limited institutional leadership, and a lack of educator expertise—are slowing progress.

Study methods

Ethical approval was obtained from the University of Auckland Human Participants Ethics Committee (reference: UAHPEC22599). Participants in Part One were offered to go into a draw for one of three $50 New Zealand dollar gift vouchers (approximately US $30), and those who were interviewed in Part Two or Part Three were offered a $20 New Zealand dollar gift voucher (approximately US $10) for participating. Participant information sheets were available prior to data collection to ensure informed consent, and any identifiable information was removed during data analysis to ensure anonymity.

Limitations

This study’s primary strength lies in its mixed methods design, combining survey data with in-depth interviews to comprehensively explore digital mental health training needs and preferences among the New Zealand mental health workforce. Including multiple perspectives—clinicians, trainees, and educators—allowed for a nuanced understanding of both frontline experiences and systemic challenges within training programs.

A 90-day district inquiry

Days 1–15 · Appraise. Read the source methods, recruitment, comparator, outcomes and limitations. Record how the study setting differs from your district and which claim the design can support.
Days 16–30 · Design. Choose one school improvement question with teachers. Protect a short shared planning cycle, agree an instructional change and use a common rubric for examining student work. Agree participation, privacy protections, baseline and stopping rules before starting.
Days 31–60 · Observe. Collect the pre-agreed measures, keep a log of implementation changes and invite confidential voluntary feedback. Preserve existing support for staff and learners.
Days 61–90 · Decide. Review implementation fidelity, teacher time and independently scored student work against a recorded baseline. Examine access differences and competing explanations before attributing changes to leadership. Make a dated decision to stop, revise or extend the inquiry.

Board decision brief

Present the local problem, source setting, evidence limits, intervention, responsible owner, total cost, measured changes and uncertainty. Separate staff perceptions, implementation measures and student learning outcomes.

Attribution and reuse

Catherine Rawnsley; Karolina Stasiak. Training the Digital Clinician by Evaluating Health Education and Curriculum Integration New Zealand Psychology and Psychiatry Programs: Mixed Methods Study. JMIR Medical Education (2025-12-31). https://doi.org/10.2196/72777

Prepared 2026-11-07. Source authorship and DOI are preserved. The abstract and source passages are attributed extracts; this editorial guide is offered under the same CC BY 4.0 license.