'I don't have time': issues of fragmentation, prioritisation and motivation for education scholarship among medical faculty

OBJECTIVES Although lack of time has been frequently cited as a barrier to scholarship, there has been little inquiry into what specific factors medical faculty staff perceive as contributing to this dilemma. The purpose of the present study was to explore, in greater detail, lack of time as a barrier for faculty interested in pursuing education scholarship. METHODS In 2004, as part of a cross-sectional, mixed-methods needs assessment, 73 (67.6%) medical faculty completed a questionnaire probing areas related to education scholarship. Additionally, one year later, 16 respondents (60% of those invited) each participated in one of three focus groups. RESULTS Despite their interest and regardless of their background training in education, faculty were able, on average, to devote only negligible amounts of time to education scholarship. The most commonly reported barrier to these pursuits was lack of protected time. Further analysis revealed that the time-related factor appeared to involve three themes: fragmentation (where opportunities to work on education projects are sporadic); prioritisation (where work responsibilities including after-hours work and administrative workload complete for time, and where there is difficulty in securing financially remunerated time), and motivation (where the degree of recognition and support for education work by both the department and colleagues is limited). CONCLUSIONS With respect to education scholarship, the dilemma caused by lack of time involves a complex, multi-faceted set of issues which extends beyond the number of hours available in a day. Personal interest and having background training in education do not appear to be sufficient to encourage involvement. Multiple institutional support mechanisms are necessary.