Faculty motivations for leading clinical clerkship electives: A qualitative study

Abstract

Purpose

Faculty are motivated to pursue clinician-educator careers out of a sense of purpose, duty, connectedness, satisfaction, and mastery. Yet, many suffer from burnout due to a lack of funding, resources, and competing clinical demands. Reasons for clinician-educator participation in unfunded educational leadership positions are underexplored. This study examined faculty members’ reasons for volunteering and remaining as clerkship elective directors, an unfunded leadership position.

Methods

In this qualitative study, the authors conducted 17 semi-structured interviews with clerkship elective directors in March 2021. The authors conducted a thematic analysis of deidentified transcripts using motivation theories as a lens.

Results

Directors’ motivations to engage in this unfunded educational leadership position stemmed from their existing clinician-educator identity and a sense of purpose and duty. Directors are sustained by the satisfaction derived from witnessing the positive impact they have on learners’ career development and skills building, the impact of learners on the clinical environment, as well as personal benefits in the mastery of educator skills and enhanced visibility as educators.

Conclusions

Unfunded educational leadership positions can advance clinician-educators’ commitment to learners and alter the learning environment. Strategies for faculty recruitment and retention in unfunded leadership positions include ensuring meaningful contact with learners, as well as opportunities for personal career development through skills building and enhanced visibility through recognition.

Keywords:

• Medicine
• medical education research
• roles of teacher
• staff development
• clinical teaching and learning

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the CIEx elective directors who participated in interviews and member checking.

Disclosure statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the article.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Leslie Sheu

Leslie Sheu, MD is an associate professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco.

Leslie Bernal Charondo

Leslie Bernal Charondo, BS is a fourth-year medical student at the University of California, San Francisco.

Patricia S. O’Sullivan

Patricia S. O’Sullivan, EdD is a professor of medicine and director of education research and faculty development in the Center for Faculty Educators at the University of California, San Francisco.