MedEdPORTAL (Nov 2015)
Ensuring the Vitality of Senior and Emeritus Faculty: A Leadership Development Workshop
Abstract
Abstract Introduction Data from the Association of American Medical Colleges reveal that the average age of medical school faculty has been steadily climbing over the past 2 decades. It is more critical than ever for academic medical centers to consider how best to engage and ensure the vitality of their senior faculty. Since there is very little published literature confronting these needs in academic medicine, this workshop was designed to help academic leaders address the topic. Methods This face-to-face workshop is designed to be 2 hours long. It could be shortened if all of the didactic information was presented first and then participants were divided into three groups with each group working on one of the cases. Following the casework, the facilitators would need a longer debrief period so each group could provide a summary of their case and present their discussion. The ideal faculty to learner ratio is 1:6-10. Results Although few attendees submitted formal program evaluations, the workshop was well received when offered at the authors' institution. The response on the program evaluation was very positive. All of the participants who completed a program evaluation agreed or strongly agreed with all of the Likert questions. This included participants agreeing or strongly agreeing with statements such as “The information presented in this program was useful to my professional work,” “As a result of this workshop I am better prepared to develop and encourage senior and emeritus faculty in my academic unit,” and “I would recommend this workshop to a colleague.” In addition, attendees were able to identify things that they planned to act upon in their future work. Discussion Given that our faculty are aging and we will see a large number of retirements in the coming years, the presenters plan to continue to refine and offer this workshop on a regular basis. Over time, more program evaluation data will yield a better understanding of the needs of our academic leaders and how to assist them in ensuring the vitality of senior and emeritus faculty.
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