Purpose -For decades, numerous mechanisms have been adopted to accelerate the progression of women in decision-making levels, and many organizations have developed programs to promote gender mainstreaming. In practice however, literature has shown that experience in gender mainstreaming faces many important challenges and under-representation persists at higher organizational levels. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach -This research brings together the results of two case studies on gender equality in the higher echelons of public and private sector organisations in Canada (Québec) and Morocco. Based on the analytical framework used as a theoretical basis for the analysis of change and resistance to gender mainstreaming, the data were revisited to explore common trends and patterns, despite the differences in context. Findings -The analysis shows that common factors support and limit women's progress in organizations. Equity initiatives are limited to the technical agenda and scant effort goes to managing political and cultural dimensions. The study shows that those dimensions play a central role in the production of gender inequality and that actions and measures targeting political and cultural dimensions must be prioritized. Originality/value -An improved conceptual framework is proposed for practical interventions and theory building. The new matrix feeds into the reflection for a new learning approach for organizations who want to achieve gender mainstreaming, to better identify the dimensions that should be addressed or to assess the measures taken and their impact and also offers a basis for new studies and research to test the matrix, its usefulness for theory building for intervention.
Plain English summaryMaking primary care clinics more patient-centered is key to improving patients’ experience of care. If patients themselves were engaged in helping define priorities and suggesting quality improvements in the clinic, care would respond better to their needs. However, patient engagement is a new phenomenon, particularly in community based primary care clinics. How to engage patients in quality improvement in these clinics, or what effect this might have, is not well known. The involvement of patients needs to be adapted to the way these clinics function. The aim of this study is to create and evaluate a new model of patient engagement for quality improvement in community based primary care clinics. Patients, primary care professionals and researchers will create advisory councils in two primary care clinics in Quebec City (Canada). In each clinic, the advisory council will include 12 patients or caregivers registered at the clinic, a clinician and a clinic manager. The advisory council will meet every 6 weeks for a total of six meetings. Two patient-experts will facilitate meetings. During meetings, members of the council will list their needs in order of importance. Then they will suggest improvements in line with these needs. We will study if our advisory council model is well adapted to community based primary care settings and meets participants’ expectations. At the end of the study we will be able to offer guidance about engaging patients with health professionals in quality improvement in primary care clinics.Abstract Background Involvement of end-users, including patients, managers and clinicians, in identifying quality improvement and research priorities might improve the relevance of projects and increase their impact. Few patient engagement initiatives have taken place in community based primary care practices (CBPCPs) and best practices for engaging patients in such settings are not well defined. The aim of this pilot study is to develop and assess the feasibility of a new collaborative model of advisory council involving clinicians, managers, patients and caregivers in CBPCP to strengthen their capacity to conduct quality improvement and patient-oriented research projects. Methods We will conduct a participatory action research project in two non-academic CBPCPs in Quebec City (Canada). In each CBPCP, the advisory council will include 12 patients or caregivers, a clinician and a clinic manager. Patients or their caregivers will be identified by clinicians and contacted by patient-experts. They will be eligible if they are registered at the practice, motivated, and available to attend meetings. The council will meet every 6 weeks for a total of six meetings. Two patient-experts will guide council members to identify quality improvement priorities and patient-oriented research questions based on their experience in the clinic. They will then be supported to plan actions to target these priorities. Analysis of meetings will be based on feasibility criteria, notes by non-participant ob...
Background Patient engagement could improve the quality of primary care practices. However, we know little about effective patient engagement strategies. We aimed to assess the acceptability and feasibility of embedding advisory councils of clinicians, managers, patients and caregivers to conduct patient-oriented quality improvement projects in primary care practices. Methods Using a participatory action research approach, we conducted our study in two non-academic primary care practices in Quebec City (Canada). Patient-experts (patients trained in research) were involved in study design, council recruitment and meeting facilitation. Advisory councils were each to include patients and/or caregivers, clinicians and managers. Over six meetings, councils would identify quality improvement priorities and plan projects accordingly. We assessed acceptability and feasibility of the councils using non-participant observations, audio-recordings and self-administered questionnaires. We used descriptive analyses, triangulated qualitative data and performed inductive thematic analysis. Results Between December 2017 and June 2018, two advisory councils were formed, each with 11 patients (36% male, mean age 53.8 years), a nurse and a manager practising as a family physician (25% male, mean age 45 years). The six meetings per practice occurred within the study period with a mean of eight patients per meeting. Councils worked on two projects each: the first council on a new information leaflet about clinic organization and operation, and on communications about local public health programs; the second on methods to further engage patients in the practice, and on improving the appointment scheduling system. Median patient satisfaction was 8/10, and 66.7% perceived councils had an impact on practice operations. They considered involvement of a manager, facilitation by patient-experts, and the fostering of mutual respect as key to this impact. Clinicians and managers liked having patients as facilitators and the respect among members. Limiting factors were difficulty focusing on a single feasible project and time constraints. Managers in both practices were committed to pursuing the councils post-study. Conclusion Our results indicated that embedding advisory councils of clinicians, managers, patients and caregivers to conduct patient-oriented quality improvement projects in primary care practices is both acceptable and feasible. Future research should assess its transferability to other clinical contexts.
Consideration of sex and gender in research and clinical practice is necessary to redress health inequities and reduce knowledge gaps. As all health professionals must maintain and update their skills throughout their career, developing innovative continuing professional education programs that integrate sex and gender issues holds great promise for reducing these gaps. This article proposes new approaches to partnership, team development, pedagogical theory, content development, evaluation and data management that will advance the integration of sex and gender in continuing professional development (CPD). Our perspectives build on an intersectoral and interprofessional research team that includes several perspectives, including those of CPD, health systems, knowledge translation and sex and gender.
Résumé L’intégration d’une main-d’œuvre diversifiée est difficile; la culture organisationnelle peut être une barrière malgré la mise en place de politiques favorables. Mais comment cerner cette culture? Depuis dix ans, la littérature qui en traite n’est pas riche mais Rutherford (2001) a caractérisé la culture organisationnelle relativement à l’intégration/l’exclusion des femmes gestionnaires; neuf dimensions ont été retenues. Nous testons son modèle à la lumière d’entrevues menées en 2008 auprès de 51 gestionnaires de trois organisations dotées d’un programme d’accès à l’égalité (PAE), afin de comprendre la lente progression des femmes vers la haute direction de chacune. Sept dimensions sont très utiles et une dimension semble déterminante : la conception de la place du travail dans la vie (division famille/travail). Nos données permettent de compléter le modèle et de le nuancer.
Le Québec a tout d’abord adopté une approche volontaire en matière d’égalité en emploi, puis des contraintes ont progressivement été ajoutées pour forcer les changements qui tardaient à s’opérer. Le présent article relate l’évolution du cadre institutionnel et illustre, à partir de certaines statistiques, les progrès inégaux réalisés par les femmes. Nous montrerons que les contraintes légales constituent de réels stimulants en ce qui concerne l’implantation de programmes visant l’équité en emploi pour les femmes, les mesures obligatoires semblant avoir plus d’effet que les déclarations ou les engagements volontaires des organisations à l’égard de l’équité. Nous soutenons l’idée que la force des représentations stéréotypées et celle des habitudes de comportement ne peuvent être contrées que par un levier tel qu’une obligation légale. L’identification des conditions requises pour favoriser les changements souhaités doit être poursuivie si l’on veut atteindre une réelle égalité dans les milieux de travail.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.