Journal Article

Can Public Health Workforce Competency and Capacity be built through an Agent-based Online, Personalized Intelligent Tutoring System?

Sarah D. Matthews, Michael D. Proctor

2021

Overview

The COVID-19 pandemic hit the United States in 2020 resulting in a public health caseload surge precipitating deployment of military and federal medical units, states issuing emergency orders to engage retired medical professionals, and novice or inadequately trained healthcare workers thrust into service to meet the pressing need. The novelty and scope of the pandemic exposed a gap in the competency and the surge capacity of the public health workforce to address the societal needs during the pandemic. This research investigated the capability of an agent-based, online personalized (AOP) intelligent tutoring system (ITS) that adaptively uses aptitude treatment interaction (ATI) to deliver public health workforce training in a prescribed health regime and assure their competency. This research also considers the ability of such an AOP ITS to support rapidly surging capacity of the public workforce to scale to meet healthcare demands while remaining accessible and flexible enough to adapt to changing healthcare guidance. Findings indicate such a system increases participant performance while providing a high level of acceptance, ease of use by users, and competency assurance. However, discussion of our findings indicates limited potential for an AOP ITS using the current ATI paradigm to make a major contribution to adding public health workforce surge capacity unless workforce members are directed to utilize it and technology barriers in the current public health IT infrastructure are overcome.

• Publisher: International Forum of Educational Technology ＆ Society,International Forum of Educational Technology & Society
• Subject: agent / Aptitude Treatment Interaction / Capacity Building / Competence / competencies / COVID-19 / Customization / Electronic Learning / Emergency medical services / Full Length Articles / Health care / Health Personnel / Individualized Instruction / Intelligent systems / intelligent tutoring system / Intelligent Tutoring Systems / Intention / Knowledge Level / Labor Force / Labor Force Development / Medical personnel / Minimum Competency Testing / Pandemics / Positive Attitudes / Public Health / Skill Development / surge capacity / Synchronous Communication / Technology application / Technology Integration / Training / Training Methods / Tutoring / Tutors and tutoring / Usability / Value Judgment / Volunteers / Workforce