Abstract

Faculty Development Program in Medical Education: An Experience from the College of Medicine, Najran University, Saudi Arabia

Background: A Faculty Development Program (FDP) is one of the major strategies that is reported in the reviewed literature to counter the increasing challenges in undergraduate medical education in Saudi Arabia. Successful implementation of FDP and workshops has been linked to enhanced teaching performance, development of new teaching skills, suggested assessment techniques, improved course design, and increased adherence to educational perspectives. Methods: A 5-week workshop as an FDP was planned and the participants’ feedback was assessed at the end of the program. This report is aimed to highlight the experience and the course design that was delivered during the workshop. Results: There were 43 healthcare providers, 23 were males and 20 were females. There were 15 physicians 20 nurses, and 8 participants from other specialties. Regarding the participants’ teaching experience, most of the participants (27, 62.8%) have been involved in teaching for more than 10 years and 27 participants (62.8%) answered yes when they were asked if this workshop is their first session in medical education. Analyzing the responses of the participants by the end of the workshop, 81.4% of the participants strongly agreed that they have been introduced to new concepts and approaches in medical education. Also, 55.8% of participants strongly agreed that the workshop changed their background in designing learning/teaching and assessment. Most of the participants (51.2%) strongly agreed that the workshop changed their background regarding the writing learning outcomes, and 79.1% of the participant strongly agreed on their enthusiasm to join more training in medical education. Conclusions: Competent clinicians and scientists are not naturally good teachers and it is highly recommended to establish and run a well-designed FDP throughout the educational year. The experience of the lecturers or their academic levels is independent of their need for courses and workshops in the field of medical education.

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