Never Felt at Home: A Qualitative Study of the Experiences of Faculty From Underrepresented Groups in Family Medicine and Strategies for Empowerment.

Abstract

Background and objectives: Increasing diversity among medical educators is a vital step toward diversifying the physician workforce. This study examined how gender, race, and other attributes affect family medicine department chairs' experiences with sponsoring, mentoring, and coaching (SMC). We identified strategies at multiple levels to enhance SMC for faculty from underrepresented groups (URGs).

Methods: Our qualitative study employed semistructured interviews with the chairs of departments of family medicine in the United States. We used inductive and deductive thematic analysis approaches to describe the experience and name usable strategies organized along the social-ecological model.

Results: We interviewed 20 family medicine department chairs between December 2020 and May 2021. Many participants continued to be alarmed that leaders and role models from URGs have been rare. Participants described incidents of aggression in White- and male-dominated atmospheres. Such experiences left some feeling not at home. Some White male leaders appeared oblivious to the experiences of URG faculty, many of whom were burdened with a minority tax. For some URGs, surviving meant moving to a more supportive institution. Building spaces for resiliency and connecting with others to combat discrimination gave meaning to some participants. Participant responses helped identify multilevel strategies for empowerment and support for URG faculty.

Conclusions: Understanding the experiences of URG faculty is paramount to improving the environment in academic medicine-paving the way to enhancing diversity in the health care sector. Institutions and individuals need to develop multilevel strategies for empowerment and support to actively make diverse faculty feel at home.