Medical school department chair performance improvement: A qualitative study

Abstract

Introduction In medical education, department chairs should play a significant role. The present qualitative study was conducted to identify factors that influence the performance improvement of department chairs at medical schools in Iran. Methods The study was conducted in Iran in 2022 and used a thematic analysis method. Using a purposeful sampling method, 20 participants were invited to participate, including medical school deans and department chairs. Focus group discussion (FGD) was used for qualitative data gathering. Braun and Clarke’s thematic analysis was used to analyze data. Results There were 18 males and 2 females among the participants. The mean age of the participants was 45±4 years. Five overarching themes were formulated: human resource management, organizational behavior management, performance support system, leadership, and financial resources. Also, nine subthemes emerged, including performance evaluation, job and work design, educational and non-educational support, motivational efforts, organization culture, organizational knowledge management, planning for change, and financing. Conclusions In this study, we found factors influencing DC performance improvement. Department chairs’ effective performance may have a positive impact on department operations, processes, or outcomes.