Clinician-Educator Training and Its Impact on Career Success: a Mixed Methods Study

Area of Science:

• Medical Education Research
• Academic Medicine Careers
• Faculty Development

Background:

• Clinician-educator (CE) roles in academic medicine are diverse and evolving.
• There is an increasing need to better prepare CEs for their multifaceted responsibilities.
• Understanding the impact of advanced training on CE success is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine if advanced education training is associated with increased academic productivity and career success for clinician-educators.
• To explore the relationship between training intensity and outcomes.
• To investigate potential gender-based differences in the impact of training.

Main Methods:

• A sequential mixed-methods approach was employed, combining quantitative surveys and qualitative focus groups.
• A three-tiered categorization of advanced training intensity was developed.
• Surveys were administered to CEs in the Society of General Internal Medicine (SGIM), with focus groups conducted at an SGIM annual meeting.

Main Results:

• High-intensity advanced training was significantly associated with greater academic productivity, including publishing more manuscripts, leading more workshops, and holding more committee positions.
• Men with no training or high-intensity training were more likely to have multiple publications compared to women.
• Women in high-intensity training programs showed publication rates comparable to men with no training, suggesting a mitigating effect of training on gender disparity.
• Networking opportunities were identified as a key benefit of advanced training programs.

Conclusions:

• Advanced education training is associated with enhanced academic productivity and can help reduce gender disparities in publications among clinician-educators.
• While opinions vary on its necessity, advanced training offers tangible benefits beyond content knowledge, including valuable networking.
• Academic institutions should actively support and provide opportunities for clinician-educators to engage in advanced education training to foster their success and promote equity.