Development of a digital teaching competency model for medical faculty: a multi-stage mixed-methods study using a modified Delphi approach

Abstract

Digital teaching competency among medical faculty is essential for promoting high-quality development in medical education. Although existing frameworks, such as the European Framework for the Digital Competence of Educators, have provided a foundation for research on teacher digital competency across disciplines and educational settings, they remain relatively limited in addressing clinical teaching contexts, patient privacy protection, medical ethics, and practice-oriented teaching responsibilities in medical education. This study aimed to develop a model that responds to educational digital transformation and reflects the dynamic development and progressive enhancement of digital teaching competency among medical faculty. A multi-stage mixed-methods design was used. Action research theory served as the meta-framework. Competency items were extracted through policy and literature analysis and semi-structured interviews to form an initial model. Two rounds of modified Delphi consultation were then conducted with 17 experts in medical teaching, clinical practice, and educational management to evaluate and revise the model. A total of 16 research articles, 8 policy documents, and interview data from 15 interview participants were included. The initial model comprised 4 first-level dimensions, 12 s-level indicators, and 48 third-level observation points. The expert response rate was 100% in both Delphi rounds. The expert authority coefficient was 0.833, and Kendall’s W values were 0.284 ( P < 0.05) and 0.316 ( P < 0.001), respectively. After the first round, a second-level indicator, “initiative in technology learning,” was added; “self-review of digital teaching competency” was relocated and reconstructed as “development and adjustment of digital teaching competency”; 13 third-level observation points were refined; and 2 duplicated indicators were removed. After the second round, only one third-level observation point was refined. The final model included four first-level dimensions of digital medical teaching—awareness, design, implementation, and reflection—13 s-level indicators, and 50 third-level observation points. The model reflects the dynamic development of faculty abilities in the digital era and strengthens medical education characteristics, including clinical reasoning guidance, patient privacy protection, and integration of medical ethics. It provides a content framework for faculty self-assessment, institutional training, evaluation tool development, and subsequent empirical research in medical schools.