A qualitative report on experiences of participants in the young innovative leadership program

Abstract

Background: Leadership in health system is a universal challenge. The Young Innovative Leadership Program (YILP) designed for undergraduate and postgraduate medical sciences students, implemented at the Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, aimed to cultivate leadership capacities through a 16-week training program. This program comprises ten modules covering innovation, change leadership, and management skills, with mentor-facilitated group discussions. This study aimed to provide a qualitative report of the experiences of participants in the YILP. Methods: A qualitative study was conducted in 2022, three months after the end of the training program, to investigate the participants’ perspectives. Data was extracted through in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 14 participants. Results: In this study 14 undergraduate and postgraduate medical sciences students who had participated in the YILP the previous year were included. Four main categories emerged from the interviews: “emergence of new horizons”, “values as beacon”, “an expanded toolbox”, and “program’s structure: a learning atmosphere”. Conclusions: The results of our study indicated that medical science students would benefit from leadership development programs. In this regard, the framework utilized to implement YILP could serve as a role model.