gms | German Medical Science

Objective: There is a great need for efficient and cost-effective training to address the global challenges in health professions education. Digital education, with its potential for widespread access at low cost and flexibility, is increasingly being used at many levels, from undergraduate and postgraduate health professions education to continuing professional development. Faculty development programs in digital education are becoming increasingly popular as they are tailored not only to the individual needs of learners, but also to their requirements for continuing education in a digital learning world. However, in the context of busy clinical practice, the question arises what motivates faculty to voluntarily participate in such programs.

Method: The Digital Health Professions Education (dHPE) program is a 200-hour certification program designed at the Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin to train digital teaching skills of health professionals from multiple backgrounds. In this qualitative study, we analyzed letters of motivation from faculty members who volunteered to participate in the dHPE program. We used coding based on the Organismic Integration Theory (OIT), a sub-theory of the Self-Determination Theory (SDT), as a framework for analysis. The two main themes were extrinsic and intrinsic motivation, the former including the four sub-themes of external regulation, introjection, identification and integration.

Results: Applicants to the dHPE program come from a variety of health professions backgrounds (medicine, pediatric cardiac surgery, anesthesia, geriatrics, dentistry, nursing and physics). The results showed that the participation in the program was mainly intrinsically motivated, such as being part of an interprofessional team or being “passionate about teaching”. Extrinsic motives included pursuing digital education as a career goal.

Discussion: Health professions teaching faculty are intrinsically motivated to participate in a digital education certification program as they relate it to their digital education roles and the drivers that influence them to pursue further qualification. Self-determination theory (SDT) provides a useful framework for exploring the motivation of health professions educators to learn and take on challenges.

Take home messages: The motivation of health professions educators to participate in faculty development programs goes beyond issues of reward and punishment. Exploring motivation provides useful guidance for the further development and implementation of such programs.