Educating the Educators

The Institute

The FAIMER Institute is a two-year, part-time fellowship program designed to teach education methods and leadership skills, and to promote the development of professional relationships among participants. By fostering interaction among international medical educators and supporting regional centers of activity in the field of medical education, the Institute strives for co-creation of experiences and resources that serve the needs of the international medical education community.

During the first year, Fellows attend two residential sessions in Philadelphia, one year apart. They develop knowledge and skills in a wide range of educational concepts, such as problem-based learning, adult learning theory, lecturing, and use of computers in education. They also participate in sessions on clinical skills teaching and assessment, faculty development, student assessment, use of educational materials, and audio-visual techniques.

In the interval between the two residential sessions, Fellows implement their curriculum innovation projects, which they have refined during the Institute's first session. The projects serve as vehicles for learning and practice of planning and leadership skills, as well as use of enhanced educational knowledge and skills. The Fellows also participate in web-based discussions between residential sessions.

In the second year, Fellows mentor a member of the entering class and actively participate in web-based discussions among members of the two classes. Throughout the program, Fellows learn methods of effective organizational leadership, personal leadership style assessment, program evaluation, project management, conflict management, strategic planning, and various e-leadership skills using web-based tools.

Curriculum Innovation Project

A major goal of the program is completion of a curriculum innovation project, proposed by Fellows in their initial application to the Institute, and implemented at their medical schools during the intersession period. Analysis of the projects conducted by Institute 2001 Fellows showed that the curriculum innovations involved one or more of the following areas: problem-based learning, student assessment, information technology, community-based medical education, program evaluation, faculty development, medical student certification, comprehensive curriculum revision and integration, and distance learning. Student assessment and faculty development received the most attention.

Global Professional Network Building

Building regional networks of medical educators is another major goal of the Institute. Each Fellow is part of the Institute for a two-year period, and interacts closely with up to thirty-five other Fellows. Network building is fostered by a period of overlap in the residential sessions for first- and second-year participants, providing opportunities for interaction between Fellows who are beginning their curriculum innovation projects and those who have just completed their projects. The development of professional networks is also advanced by FAIMER's geographical foci, which accelerate the development of resources locally. The results are mentoring and collaborative relationships that contribute to regional and, ultimately, global networks of experts in medical education.

The designation of one curricular day as International Medical Education Day provides a specific opportunity for focused interaction among new and returning Fellows. The topic for International Medical Education Day for the 2003 residential session was developing successful, sustainable international networks to advance medical education and research. Methods identified for enhancing network development included: enhanced connection with the sponsoring Deans, development of a broad association of Fellows from all FAIMER fellowship programs, initiation of an e-mail communication list for program alumni, and networking meetings appropriate for each region. The Fellows also identified topics important to their regions, including medical personnel migration, student assessment, faculty development, internationalization versus globalization of medical schools, and medical school impact on health systems. These topics provide additional information about the needs and interests of the international faculty and will be addressed in the curriculum.

Measuring Impact

Ongoing evaluation of the Institute is essential to measuring and improving the efficacy of the program. To obtain objective feedback, FAIMER has commissioned an external review of the program. The review, which is being conducted by Stewart Mennin, Ph.D., Summers Kalishman, Ph.D., and MaryAnn Eklund, R.N., Ph.D., of the University of New Mexico, employs retrospective surveys and interviews of Institute Fellows, beginning with the first Institute class of 2001. The evaluation team interviewed 2002 Fellows at the end of their second session, and will continue interviewing all Fellows periodically for a number of years to assess the full impact of the Institute.

The results of the review thus far indicate that the Fellows' knowledge, skills, or competence related to topics presented during the Institute improved greatly. The review also reports that the supportive learning environment and the multi-national composition of the participants, especially the opportunity to network and gain insights about different countries and regions, are highly valued by participants. The team has also identified competence in English as a second language as an important factor for success in the program.

Preliminary feedback from the 2003 Fellows has been quite positive. The following statement from an Institute 2003 Fellow is representative:

"The exercises in the sessions were the most important and helpful parts to understand the topic. And those exercises will be valuable experiences for me to apply them in my practice. I had the opportunity to see different approaches from different countries all around the world and to review the place of my institution, regarding undergraduate medical education — where we are and where we should be. It will be a great experience if we realize institutional collaborations with other fellows."

The success of the Institute is also evidenced by continued networking among former Fellows. The 2001 and 2002 Fellows are collaborating on a manuscript describing the medical school accreditation process in nine countries. On the topic of professional networking, the University of New Mexico evaluation team has reported:

"The 2001 Fellows... ranked their interactions with their Institute peers as among the most important assets FAIMER offered."

An additional measure of the impact of the FAIMER Institute is the high level of professional activity and accomplishment achieved by Fellows after the fellowship experience. Refer to Exhibit C for a summary of the professional accomplishments achieved by Institute 2002 Fellows during the past year. Former Fellows are also collaborating to plan local workshops on medical education; refer to Regional Initiatives.

Global Faculty Advisors

The Institute's faculty include both permanent members and visiting members, selected on an annual basis, who represent a variety of disciplines. In 2003, the Institute moved closer to its goal of having an international faculty with the addition of four Global Faculty Advisors. These Global Faculty Advisors, who are former Fellows from the Institute 2001 class, worked to expand and improve the mentoring curriculum and provided individualized help with curriculum innovation projects. Each Global Faculty Advisor leads a group of second-year mentors and first-year mentees throughout the year.

Regional Initiatives

FAIMER's programs attempt to maximize impact by concentrating resources in specific geographical areas. In 2003, the FAIMER Board of Directors finalized the selection of India, followed by Sub-Saharan Africa and South America, as regional areas of focus. Within the context of the Institute, these regional foci will guide the selection of future Institute Fellows and the allocation of FAIMER resources. One successful outcome of FAIMER's regional foci would be for centers of activity in these regions to develop into regional institutes. A number of regional initiatives with such potential are underway, with the support of FAIMER planning grants.

In Vellore, India, a group of Institute and IFME Fellows from India and Pakistan, led by Institute 2001 Fellow Anand Zachariah, M.D., Ph.D., is planning a two-day medical education workshop. Former Fellows Vanessa Burch, M.B.Bch., M.med., FCP; Boaz Otieno-Nyunya, M.D., M.Ed.; and Ana Lia Vargas, M.D. are also starting to develop regional institutes. Dr. Vargas has invited Institute and IFME Fellows from Argentina, Brazil, and Chile to Mendoza, Argentina. In Kenya, Dr. Otieno-Nyunya is using the grant to plan for a future regional institute, and to run a full-day medical education workshop for Fellows from central Africa.