Digital teaching competence in intensive care medicine: an imperative for educational transformation in Cuba

Abstract

The digital transformation of medical education in Cuba, accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, has evidenced critical gaps in the digital teaching competencies of the faculty staff who teaches the Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine vertical internship program. Although virtualization is not new to the educational system, its effective implementation requires more than technical mastery of tools: it demands a critical, ethical, and pedagogical integration of technologies in contexts of high clinical complexity. Based on theoretical frameworks such as advanced education, the TPACK model, and international references such as DigCompEdu and UNESCO, this article argues that digital teaching competences constitute an essential pillar for the training of competent intensivists, capable of acting with clinical judgment, humanism, and adaptability in critical environments. Persistent limitations are identified: instrumental use of information and communication technologies, resistance to pedagogical change, poor preparation of digital content, and low incorporation of active technology mediated methodologies. Teaching improvement must be reoriented toward a holistic approach that articulates disciplinary, pedagogical, and technological knowledge; this way, critical reflection, educational innovation, and continuous professional development are promoted. In this sense, the digital teaching competence is not an add-on, but a strategic imperative aligned with the 2030 Agenda and the guidelines of Cuban economic and social policy. Strengthening this competence will allow for the construction of hybrid, inclusive, and student-centered educational ecosystems capable of responding to current and future health challenges in Cuba.