Exploring medical curriculum leadership and management training: Perspectives of doctors and medical educators in Botswana

Background. The University of Botswana Faculty of Medicine (UB FOM) is the only medical school in Botswana, and was opened to address shortages that other workforce strategies were not achieving at a sufficient rate. The UB FOM programme involves early patient contact at all levels of healthcare. Newly-graduated doctors are expected to perform managerial responsibilities, a role which few medical curricula include formal training for. Objectives. To explore the perceptions of graduates and medical educators (MEs) on the leadership and management training in the medical curriculum in Botswana. Methods. A non-theory driven qualitative study using thematic analysis was conducted. Twelve MEs and graduates from UB FOM were interviewed. Semi-structured interviews were conducted until data saturation was reached. Data were transcribed and analysed. Results. Two themes were developed: Starting small to be tall and Planting the seeds. Theme 1 describes the explicit messages of being future managers and leaders unaccompanied by formal training. Theme 2 acknowledges the insufficient training and describes the call for scaffolded longitudinal leadership and management teaching, and enhanced interprofessional education. Conclusion. Elements of leadership and management training are already included within the curriculum. The health system expectation that these graduates will immediately assume leadership and management responsibilities necessitates the strengthening of these aspects. The inclusion of critical content and further expansion of interprofessional education can be considered. The UB FOM is in a position to actualise its identified leadership and management competencies to serve the needs of its graduates and those in their care.