A national clinician–educator program: a model of an effective community of practice

Abstract

Background The increasing complexity of medical training often requires faculty members with educational expertise to address issues of curriculum design, instructional methods, assessment, program evaluation, faculty development, and educational scholarship, among others.Discussion In 2007, The Royal College of Physicians & Surgeons of Canada responded to this need by establishing the first national clinician–educator program. We define a clinician–educator and describe the development of the program. Adopting a construct from the business community, we use a community of practice framework to describe the benefits (with examples) of this program and challenges in developing it. The benefits of the clinician–educator program include: improved educational problem solving, recognition of educational needs and development of new projects, enhanced personal educational expertise, maintenance of professional satisfaction and retention of group members, a positive influence within the Royal College, and a positive influence within other Canadian academic institutions.Summary Our described experience of a social reorganization – a community of practice – suggests that the organizational and educational benefits of a national clinician–educator program are not theoretical, but real.

Clinician-educators in emerging graduate medical education systems: description, roles and perceptions

“…However, a growing body of literature documents the challenges and frustrations faced by CEs in North America and Europe, including increased pressure for clinical productivity14 and decreased opportunities for promotion,15 leaving many feeling frustrated and undervalued 16. In response, North American and European institutions have developed teaching academies,17 18 instituted large-scale CE training programmes,19 20 and created multiple promotion tracks 21. As GME programmes scale up globally, it is therefore important to understand and characterise the roles, rewards and value of international CEs.…”

JGME-ALiEM Hot Topics in Medical Education Online Journal Club: An Analysis of a Virtual Discussion About Resident Teachers

“…27 The common theme is to bring different communities of practice together in a virtual online space to discuss, cocreate, and disseminate knowledge in an open and flat hierarchical environment. 28 A limitation of this online journal club is sampling bias. Familiarity with social media was required for participation.…”

Multiple Wins: Embracing Technology to Increase Efficiency and Maximize Efforts

“…A community of practice is a voluntary, collaborative network of professionals working together to develop shared understandings and engage in knowledge building. 12 In these virtual communities of practice, the lines between "learner" and "educator" are blurred, and members come together in a digital shared space to develop, discuss, and disseminate education resources. [13][14][15][16] Although this movement was inspired to improve learning, it has also created an environment of scholarship, as educators discover the power of the virtual community to facilitate efforts to collaboratively produce, peer review, and disseminate innovations.…”