Developing new competencies in healthcare practitioners in the field.

: The Life-long Learning concept is one which is appropriate for those who have (or create) the opportunities to develop their competencies once they are in an operational role. All models of healthcare delivery and management are VOLATILE and therefore the way of addressing new competencies cannot be prescriptive or stand still for too long, but the concepts do endure. Learning, in order to 'keep up to date' is very necessary--technology, new clinical practices and interventions, new drug interactions, increased patient demands ... all add to the need to move with the times. This paper addresses some of the issues surrounding this challenge in the domain of informatics in support of healthcare delivery and management.