Cent Eur J Nurs Midw 2025, 16(3):2238-2253 | DOI: 10.15452/cejnm.2025.16.0017

A comparison of digital health competence and associated factors among Czech nurses using online versus paper-based data collection methods: a cross-sectional study

Petra Mandysová1, Kristina Mikkonen2,3,4, Marco Tomietto4, Erika Jarva2, Zuzana Červenková5, Jaroslav Pekara6, Martin Krause7
1 Department of Nursing, Faculty of Health Studies, University of Pardubice, Czech Republic
2 Research Unit of Health Science and Technology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oulu, Finland
3 Medical Research Council, Oulu University Hospital, Finland
4 Department of Nursing, Midwifery and Healthcare, Faculty of Health & Life Sciences, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
5 Department of Clinical Subspecialities, Faculty of Health Studies, University of Pardubice, Czech Republic
6 Paramedic Department, Medical College, Prague, Czech Republic
7 Department of Nursing, Medical College, Prague, Czech Republic

Aim: To compare digital health competence (DHC) and associated factors among Czech nurses from various healthcare settings, using online versus paper-based data collection methods.

Design: A cross-sectional survey.

Methods: Data were collected from October 2023 to July 2024. The survey included demographic and professional data, along with two DHC instruments: DigiHealthCom and DigiComInf, translated from English to Czech. Descriptive analysis, likelihood ratio (LR), χ² and Fisher’s exact tests, and the Mann-Whitney U test were used to analyze the data.

Results: The survey was fully completed by 263 nurses. Significant differences were observed between the paper-based and online subgroups in most demographic and professional variables, with large effect sizes for educational level (Z = -7.436; p < 0.001) and frequency of patient interactions (Z = -6.243; p < 0.001). Overall, most DHC items received favorable ratings for digitalization and associated factors. While subjectively perceived DHC differed significantly between the subgroups in most factors, the effect sizes of these differences were not large.

Conclusion:  Although the level of DHC was favorable, further research is warranted due to extensive missing data, which may be the result of limited experience and a lack of established opinions on certain items.

Keywords: competence, digitalization, digital health, digital technology, healthcare, nurses, online

Received: January 10, 2025; Revised: July 17, 2025; Accepted: July 18, 2025; Prepublished online: August 21, 2025; Published: September 6, 2025  Show citation

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Mandysová P, Mikkonen K, Tomietto M, Jarva E, Červenková Z, Pekara J, Krause M. A comparison of digital health competence and associated factors among Czech nurses using online versus paper-based data collection methods: a cross-sectional study. Central European Journal of Nursing and Midwifery. 2025;16(3):2238-2253. doi: 10.15452/cejnm.2025.16.0017.
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