PRP043: Capacity Building Future Primary Health Care Researchers: Impact of an Interdisciplinary Training Program
Rob Van Hoorn, MA; Amanda Terry, PhD; Judith Brown, PhD; Moira Stewart, PhD, BSc; Eugene Law, BSc
Abstract
Context: Capacity building of future interdisciplinary researchers in primary health care (PHC) does not necessarily take place within individual discipline training. The Trandisciplinary Understanding and Training on Research–Primary Health Care (TUTOR-PHC), a one year training program, addresses this gap. By conducting a thorough evaluation of the educational experience and outcomes, the program’s impact is assessed. Objective: To describe the end-of-year evaluation of the training program for 2010-2018. Study Design: As part of a multi-faceted evaluation approach, a self-administered twenty-three item questionnaire exploring Program Ratings, Career Issues, and Collaborations is completed by all trainees at the end of the program. Setting: The pan-Canadian TUTOR-PHC program consists of a 4-day Symposium, followed by a year-long asynchronous online curriculum (including workshops, small discussion groups and mock grant proposal). Population studied: Program trainees: Masters, PhD, post-doctoral fellows, early-career researchers, and mid-career clinicians. Outcome Measures: The evaluation reports on how the program met its goal of increased interdisciplinary research understanding and activity, benefit to trainees, and trainee satisfaction. Results: 49/110 or 45% of trainees in the 2010 to 2018 trainee cohorts responded to the questionnaire. Evaluation results indicate that TUTOR-PHC is achieving its goals. Overall program experiences are very positive (mean score of 3.5, score of 1 is poor, 4 is excellent). Over 90% of trainees respondents indicated that TUTOR-PHC increased their interdisciplinary research understanding and activity, over 80% thought the training would assist them with advancing their interdisciplinary research careers at the time of program completion and in the future, and 95% thought the program provided benefit for the time expended. 93% of trainees were currently involved in PHC and 100% planned to participate in PHC research in the future. Even at the early stage of program completion (one year), 23% of trainees had already forged new interdisciplinary collaborations, and 35% of trainees had collaborated with other TUTOR-PHC trainees, supervisors and mentors. Conclusions: TUTOR-PHC has successfully trained interdisciplinary researchers in PHC. These trainees have gone on to collaborate extensively with each other on research projects post-training, and many have become research leaders across Canada and internationally in PHC.
Liz Sturgiss
liz.sturgiss@monash.edu 11/20/2020TUTOR-PHC is a fantastic program, I see my own experience reflected in these outstanding evaluation results. Thanks TUTOR team