Redesigning a faculty development program for clinical teachers in Indonesia: a before-and-after study

Faculty development (FD) is important to support teaching, including for clinical teachers. Faculty of Medicine Universitas Indonesia (FMUI) has conducted a clinical teacher training program developed by the medical education department since 2008, both for FMUI teachers and for those at other centers in Indonesia. However, participation is often challenging due to clinical, administrative, and research obligations. The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic amplified the urge to transform this program. This study aimed to redesign and evaluate an FD program for clinical teachers that focuses on their needs and current situation.

A 5-step design thinking framework (empathizing, defining, ideating, prototyping, and testing) was used with a pre/post-test design. Design thinking made it possible to develop a participant-focused program, while the pre/post-test design enabled an assessment of the program’s effectiveness.

Seven medical educationalists and 4 senior and 4 junior clinical teachers participated in a group discussion in the empathize phase of design thinking. The research team formed a prototype of a 3-day blended learning course, with an asynchronous component using the Moodle learning management system and a synchronous component using the Zoom platform. Pre-post-testing was done in 2 rounds, with 107 and 330 participants, respectively. Evaluations of the first round provided feedback for improving the prototype for the second round.

Design thinking enabled an innovative-creative process of redesigning FD that emphasized participants’ needs. The pre/ post-testing showed that the program was effective. Combining asynchronous and synchronous learning expands access and increases flexibility. This approach could also apply to other FD programs.