Women in dental education and their desire to lead: A follow-up.

The aim of this study was to provide a follow-up to the 2015 national survey of women in dental education to re-examine factors and perceived barriers to pursuing administrative and leadership roles. At the beginning of 2023, a survey was administered to full-time women faculty in predoctoral dental programs in the United States. The survey instrument employed a structured format along with open-ended questions to capture qualitative data. The overall response rate was 26% (527/1994) and included respondents from fifty-five of the sixty-seven dental schools contacted. Half of respondents indicated holding an administrative position and 20% reported administration as their primary appointment. There was a significant increase in the number of women holding a leadership role in 2023 (76%) compared to 2015 (53%). Those seeking a leadership position in 2023 were less likely to have participated in leadership training (p<0.01) and less likely to have previously sought an administrative position (p>0.01). Women in leadership and administrative roles were more likely to indicate receiving extra compensation for administrative duties (p<0.01) and a desire for higher rank (p = 0.04) compared to 2015, but perceptions persist among the majority of respondents (71%) that women are not being compensated equally to their male counterparts. Respondents highlighted the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on career advancement and the positive culture changes that have contributed to greater workplace flexibility. Overall, respondents sent a resounding message that women in dental education need structural change to achieve success: pay equity, mentorship, and inclusive and supportive work environments.

Innovation and entrepreneurship of Chinese returning migrant workers in their home region.

This study aims to investigate the influence of pre-entrepreneurial career mobility frequency and job changes among returning migrant workers (RMWs) on the innovation level of enterprises, with a particular focus on the mediating role of urban social capital accumulated by RMWs. Using data from the "current entrepreneurial status of RMWs", we applied an ordered probit model to validate our hypotheses. To address endogeneity, a recursive bivariate probit model was used, and stepwise regression combined with bootstrap methods was employed to ascertain the mediating influence of urban social capital. Our results demonstrate a significant positive correlation (P < 0.01) between pre-entrepreneurial career mobility frequency and the innovation level of enterprises among RMWs. However, there's a notable negative correlation (P < 0.01) between experiences as elementary workers and enterprise innovation level, while technical and marketing roles correlate positively (P < 0.01) with enterprise innovation level. Urban social capital mediates the relationship between career mobility and enterprise innovation level, suggesting that career mobility enhance urban social capital accumulation, influencing RMWs' enterprise innovation levels. This empirical evidence holds even after robustness tests. We further observed that RMWs with fewer than three career moves lean towards low level of enterprise innovation, while those with three or more gravitate towards high level of enterprise innovation. This study advances the theory of career mobility and enriches the understanding of enterprise innovation levels. Additionally, it provides critical theoretical insights for prospective RMWs entrepreneurs in strategizing their career mobility and job changes. Policy implications suggest that, in addition to providing entrepreneurial support, the government should facilitate pre-entrepreneurial career mobility channels for migrant workers and consider the transition from rural to urban employment as a socialized ritual for RMWs engaging in entrepreneurship.

Unraveling attrition and retention: A qualitative study with rehabilitation professionals.

BACKGROUND: Health human resources are scarce worldwide. In occupational therapy (OT), physical therapy (PT), and speech-language pathology (S-LP), attrition and retention issues amplify this situation and contribute to the precarity of health systems. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the phenomena of attrition and retention with OTs, PTs and S-LPs who stayed in, or left their profession. METHODS: Cultural-historical activity theory provided the theoretical scaffolding for this interpretive description study. We used purposeful sampling (maximum variation approach) to recruit OTs, PTs, and S-LPs from Quebec, Canada. Individual interviews were conducted with 51 OTs, PTs, and S-LPs from Quebec, Canada, in English or French (2019-2020). Inductive and deductive approaches, and constant comparative techniques were used for data analysis. RESULTS: Six themes were developed: 1) characteristics of work that made it meaningful; 2) aspects of work that practitioners appreciate; 3) factors of daily work that weigh on a practitioner; 4) factors that contribute to managing work; 5) relationships with different stakeholders that shape daily work; and 6) perceptions of the profession. Meaningfulness was tied to participants' sense that their values were reflected in their work. Factors outside work shaped participants' work experiences. Recurrent negative experiences led some to leave their profession. CONCLUSION: Findings underscore a critical need to address contributing factors to attrition and retention which are essential to ensuring the availability of OTs, PTs and SLPs for present and future rehabilitation needs.

Mastering the art of managing up.

In an effort to expedite the publication of articles, AJHP is posting manuscripts online as soon as possible after acceptance. Accepted manuscripts have been peer-reviewed and copyedited, but are posted online before technical formatting and author proofing. These manuscripts are not the final version of record and will be replaced with the final article (formatted per AJHP style and proofed by the authors) at a later time.

Implementation of a pharmacy technician career ladder and pharmacy technician training program.

DISCLAIMER: In an effort to expedite the publication of articles, AJHP is posting manuscripts online as soon as possible after acceptance. Accepted manuscripts have been peer-reviewed and copyedited, but are posted online before technical formatting and author proofing. These manuscripts are not the final version of record and will be replaced with the final article (formatted per AJHP style and proofed by the authors) at a later time. PURPOSE: To describe the implementation of a pharmacy technician career ladder and internal technician training program at UF Health Shands Hospital in Gainesville, Florida. SUMMARY: As the systems for providing care and receiving reimbursement become more complex, the ability to deliver comprehensive care in the most efficient and effective manner is critical. In order to maximize impact, pharmacists must practice at the top of their license. Recruitment and retention practices that support an optimized pharmacy technician workforce and continued expansion of technician roles are vital to advancement of pharmacy practice. This report describes the efforts to improve technician recruitment, professional development, and retention through the implementation of a technician career ladder and internal training program. The programs contributed to a reduction in technician rolling 12-month turnover rates from 26.72% in July 2015 to 13.1% in March 2023 (a reduction of 51%). Overtime hours as a percentage of total hours worked were reduced from 11.02% in July 2015 to 4.54% in March 2023 (a reduction of 59%). Improvements were noted in pharmacy technician job satisfaction, as evidenced by key employee engagement indicators including responses to the posed statement "Overall, I am a satisfied employee," with a mean score of 3.32 (on a scale of 0-5) in 2015 as compared to 4.2 in 2019 (a 21% increase). CONCLUSION: Implementation of a pharmacy technician career ladder and technician training program creates a sustainable and effective recruitment and retention pathway that may favorably impact technician job satisfaction, turnover, and career development opportunities.

Counternarratives that illuminate faculty agency: A five-year longitudinal qualitative study of physician educators in academic medicine.

PURPOSE: Physician educators are often expected to direct educational programs and assume roles that conform to field norms for career advancement but that may not afford meaningful work for educators. The purpose of this study was to describe and analyse the perspectives and actions taken by physician educators in response to tension between feeling compelled to direct an educational program and doing educationally meaningful work. METHODS AND MATERIALS: We used data from a longitudinal study and focused on three participants who, over the course of the five-year study, offered significant insights into how physician educators act in ways that run counter to expectations for career advancement. Our narrative analysis entailed organizing data from interview transcripts into time-ordered displays, weaving data into counternarratives that were edited by participants, and using the theory of faculty agency (and its key constructs, strategic perspectives and strategic action) to thread the stories together. RESULTS: In each counternarrative, the participant deliberated their sense of being a physician educator (strategic perspectives) and when expectations became untenable, they did what they needed to do to engage in meaningful work (strategic action) rather than comply with expectations for career advancement in academic medicine. For one participant, faculty agency meant leaving academic medicine; for another, it meant reducing clinical time so that unpaid time could be devoted to education; and for another, it meant opting not do direct a reputable education program. CONCLUSIONS: Faculty agency is a useful theoretical lens for conceptualizing how physician educators navigate their careers in academic medicine. Counternarratives that illuminate faculty agency offer stories that describe alternate career paths and portend a different future for physician educators.

Transformational leadership and employability among support staff workers with long tenure.

BACKGROUND: In the changing world of work, there is an urgency to gain insight into determinants of the employability among support staff workers with long tenure whose functions may become outdated as their competencies may no longer match the requirements of future jobs. OBJECTIVE: The specific aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between transformational leadership and employability. METHODS: Support staff (n = 236) from a university participated in an online questionnaire focusing on five dimensions of employability (occupational expertise, anticipation and optimization, personal flexibility, corporate sense, and balance) and transformational leadership (identifying and articulating a vision, providing an appropriate model, fostering the acceptance of group goals, providing individual support, and intellectual stimulation. RESULTS: Identifying and articulating a vision (ß= 0.247, p < 0.001), providing an appropriate model (ß= 0.196, p = 0.002), fostering the acceptance of group goals (ß= 0.298, p < 0.001) and providing individual support (ß= 0.258, p < 0.001) were associated with higher balance scores. No significant associations were found between the transformational leadership subscales and the other dimensions of employability. CONCLUSION: The current study found that just one specific dimension of transformational leadership was associated with only one aspect of employability for our target group of long-term employed support staff workers with a high level of job security.

Accessibility in health professions education: The Flexner Report and barriers to diversity in American physical therapy.

Health professionals do not reflect the broader racial/ethnic diversity of the United States. Historical barriers to accessing health professions education have played a major role in initiating and perpetuating these disparities. Sociologists of professions have highlighted the role of educational reform in professions' efforts to enhance their status, but have overlooked the central role of government bodies in facilitating or impeding these strategies. The Flexner Report (1910) enhanced the status of medicine, but only after state medical boards adopted its recommendations, leading to the closure of half of the nation's medical schools and limiting opportunities for marginalized populations to enter the medical profession. Physical therapy leaders have espoused Flexner's precepts in seeking to advance their field's professionalization. In doing so, they consistently overlooked the more insidious impacts of Flexnerian approaches on student and practitioner diversity. This article examines how physical therapy's Flexnerian ambitions disrupted its parallel efforts to increase the field's racial/ethnic diversity. I argue that physical therapy leaders' focus on enhancing their profession's status and indifference toward facilitating educational access and mobility played a significant role in the field's racial/ethnic homogeneity. To increase practitioner diversity in the future, especially following the 2023 US Supreme Court decision (600 U.S. 181) restricting race conscious affirmative action, health professions must do more to address barriers to student access. This will involve moving away from the Flexnerian model and pursuing approaches that have helped more diverse and inclusive health professions, like nursing, to achieve greater educational opportunity and mobility.

Implementation of a technician success and onboarding coordinator to reduce technician turnover.

PURPOSE: This article provides an overview of changes implemented at an academic medical center to reduce pharmacy technician turnover. SUMMARY: Pharmacy technician turnover has been a problem for years. Technicians come and go; they move on to other positions, and continuous turnover is an avoidable expense. With greater focus on creating a successful onboarding experience for newly hired technicians, turnover should decrease and satisfaction and engagement should increase. When a newly hired technician leaves a department within the first year, it can have a negative impact on the engagement of the remaining technicians who spent time training new hires in how to complete tasks, mentoring them, and incorporating them into the team. Creating a positive onboarding experience will decrease expenses accrued and minimize wasted resources and staff time dedicated to a technician who will not be around in 6 months to 1 year. At M Health Fairview, a Minneapolis, MN-based health system, technician retention has been improved through a standardized approach to onboarding and orientation, including creation of the new staff role of technician success and onboarding coordinator (TSOC). CONCLUSION: A standard approach to onboarding pharmacy technicians and integrating them into the pharmacy department has proven to be essential to technician retention at M Health Fairview. To get started, it is important to find the right person for the TSOC role to coordinate successful onboarding of newly hired pharmacy technicians. That person should be an individual with passion to engage and inspire newly hired technicians, with several years of experience, and with the ability to cascade knowledge.

Developing a prediction model of career plateau for nurses: A cross-sectional study.

AIM: The study aimed to understand the current situation regarding career plateaus experienced by nurses. The objectives were to analyze factors influencing career plateau, and develop a prediction model for career plateau for nurses. DESIGN: A cross-sectional survey was conducted using convenience sampling. METHODS: Participants were 2680 nurses from six tertiary hospitals. Univariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses were carried out to investigate the influencing factors and develop a prediction model of career plateau. RESULTS: The overall incidence rate of nurses reaching a career plateau was 34%. Logistic regression analysis showed that age, position, whether specialized nurses, life satisfaction, organizational support, personal ability and selection tendency were the factors influencing career plateau. The prediction model indicates that older nurses are more likely to reach a career plateau than their younger counterparts, and those who think they have strong personal ability and do not value their work very much are more likely to have a career plateau. Giving nurses more promotion space and learning opportunities, improving life satisfaction, and organizational support are conducive to reducing the occurrence of career plateau.

Field Epidemiology and Public Health Microbiology training: capturing the alumni perspectives of the training's impact.

We present the findings from the European Programme for Intervention Epidemiology Training (EPIET) Alumni Network (EAN) Member Survey conducted in October to December 2021. The EAN consists of field epidemiologists (EPIET) and public health microbiologists (European Public Health Microbiology Training Programme (EUPHEM)) who stay connected after their 2-year fellowship. This active alumni network provides opportunities for career development, mentorship, knowledge exchange and sharing of best practices for community members, affiliated professionals and public health organisations in Europe. Overall, 281 of 732 members participated in the survey. Of the 192 European fellowship alumni respondents, 173 (90%) indicated that skills and competencies acquired during their fellowship improved performance in their role compared with their abilities before the fellowship. Reported skills and competencies that could be further strengthened included data management/analysis, communication, mathematical modelling and leadership/team management. The EAN Member Survey provides valuable feedback to the EAN, as well as the fellowship programme offices at the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and affiliated field epidemiology programmes. The COVID-19 pandemic was a stark reminder of how essential cross-border collaborations are for continued European health security. Maintaining and increasing the professional, well-trained workforce remains crucial for optimal response to infectious diseases and protection of public health.

Exploring gender differences in uptake of GP partnership roles: a qualitative mixed-methods study.

BACKGROUND: The unadjusted gender pay gap in general practice is reported to be 33.5%. This reflects partly the differential rate at which women become partners, but evidence exploring gender differences in GPs' career progression is sparse. AIM: To explore factors affecting uptake of partnership roles, focusing particularly on gender differences. DESIGN AND SETTING: Convergent mixed-methods research design using data from UK GPs. METHOD: Secondary analysis of qualitative interviews and social media analysis of UK GPs' Twitter commentaries, which informed the conduct of asynchronous online focus groups. Findings were combined using methodological triangulation. RESULTS: The sample comprised 40 GP interviews, 232 GPs tweeting about GP partnership roles, and seven focus groups with 50 GPs. Factors at individual, organisational, and national levels influence partnership uptake and career decisions of both men and women GPs. Desire for work-family balance (particularly childcare responsibilities) presented the greatest barrier, for both men and women, as well as workload, responsibility, financial investment, and risk. Greater challenges were, however, reported by women, particularly regarding balancing work-family lives, as well as prohibitive working conditions (including maternity and sickness pay) and discriminatory practices perceived to favour men and full-time GPs. CONCLUSION: There are some long-standing gendered barriers that continue to affect the career decisions of women GPs. The relative attractiveness of salaried, locum, or private roles in general practice appears to discourage both men and women from partnerships presently. Promoting positive workplace cultures through strong role models, improved flexibility in roles, and skills training could potentially encourage greater uptake.

Chiropractic Profession Attrition: A Narrative Review of Studies Over the Past 30 Years.

Objective: The purpose of this review was to investigate and discuss the available literature regarding chiropractic profession attrition. Methods: For this narrative review, searches for peer-reviewed observational and experimental papers published from January 1991 to December 2021 were conducted in the following 5 databases: MEDLINE, CINAHL (Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature), AMED (Allied and Complementary Medicine Database), Scopus, and Web of Science. Keywords included "chiropractic," "attrition," and "burnout, professional." Studies related to student or patient dropouts were excluded. Results: Three of 108 identified papers met the inclusion criteria. Two studies that measured attrition rates reported between 4.5% and 27.8%. These ranges are limited to 1982 to 1991 graduates of Life College of Chiropractic West and individuals issued a California chiropractic license in 1991. The remaining study that investigated the attitudes of nonpracticing chiropractors proposed multifactorial causes leading to attrition. The 3 included studies used retrospective observational design. Conclusion: The literature is limited, and factors linked to attrition or career mobility remain inconclusive. A better understanding of chiropractic profession attrition rates is needed to offer insights into the profession's practice environment, education, and professional outcomes. Accurate information on attrition may assist with workforce modeling and help prepare for the projected increase in musculoskeletal health care demand.

Career Advancement Among Women Physicians in Nine Academic Medicine Specialties.

Objective: Gender parity lags in academic medicine. We applied the Rank Equity Index (REI) to compare the longitudinal progress of women's academic medicine careers. We hypothesized that women have different rank parity in promotion by specialty based on the proportion of women in the specialty. Materials and Methods: Aggregate data by sex for medical students, residents, assistant professors, associate professors, and professors in nine specialties were obtained from the Association of American Medical Colleges for 2019-2020. Specialties were clustered into terciles based on the proportion of women in the field: upper (obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics, psychiatry), middle (internal medicine, emergency medicine, anesthesia), and lower (surgery, urology, and orthopedic surgery). We calculated the percentage representation by sex by specialty and rank to calculate REI. Specialty-specific REI comparisons between each rank were performed to assess parity in advancement. Results: Only specialties in the upper tercile recruited proportionally more women medical students to residency training. All specialties advanced women for the resident-to-assistant professor with psychiatry, internal medicine, emergency medicine, anesthesia, urology, and orthopedic surgery that promoted women faculty at rates above parity. No specialty demonstrated parity in advancement based on sex for the assistant professor-to-associate professor or associate professor-to-professor transitions. Conclusion: Gender inequity in advancement is evident in academic medicine starting at the assistant professor-to-associate professor stage, regardless of overall proportion of women in the specialty. This suggests a common set of barriers to career advancement of women faculty in academic medicine that must be addressed starting at the early career stage.

Programa de Mentoría: acompañando tus primeros pasos hacia la excelencia científica / Mentoring Programme: Guiding your first steps towards scientific excellence

El primer Programa de Mentoría de SEMICYUC tiene como objetivo apoyar la carrera investigadora de los miembros más jóvenes de la Sociedad. Como beneficios añadidos está la adquisición de nuevas capacidades de investigación y/o clínicas, incrementar la capacidad de reflexión y fomentar el desarrollo de la próxima generación de líderes en la investigación. Este proyecto no sería posible sin el equipo excepcional de mentores o expertos investigadores dispuestos a emprender el viaje con los jóvenes aprendices. El presente artículo expone las bases de dicho programa, además de proponer futuros cambios en haz de una mejora continua (AU)

SEMICYUC's first Mentoring Programme aims to support the research careers of the Society's youngest members. Added benefits include acquiring new research and/or clinical skills, increasing the ability of critical thought, and fostering the development of the next generation of research leaders. This project would not be possible without the exceptional team of mentors or research experts willing to embark on the journey with the young trainees. This article sets out the foundations of such a programme and proposes future changes for continuous improvement (AU)

Working Conditions Among Chinese Nurses Employed in Japan: A Cross-Sectional Survey-Based Study.

Introduction: Although the number of Chinese nurses employed in Japan is increasing, the situation regarding their work conditions has not been clarified. It is necessary to understand such conditions to consider support for Chinese nurses in Japan. Objective: This study examined the professional nursing practice environment, occupational career, and work engagement of Chinese nurses in Japan. Methods: Using a cross-sectional study design, 640 paper questionnaires were mailed to 58 Japanese hospitals that employed Chinese nurses and included a QR code for online responses. A survey request form and URL were sent to the Wechat app, where Chinese nurses in Japan communicate. The contents include attribute-related questions, the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index (PES-NWI), Occupational Career Scale, and Utrecht Work Engagement Scale. Either Wilcoxon's rank-sum or the Kruskal-Wallis test was performed to compare scores of the study variables between subgroups. Results: A total of 199 valid responses were obtained, of which 92.5% were female, and 69.3% had a university degree or higher. The PES-NWI score was 2.74, and the work engagement score was 3.10. The group with a university degree or higher had significantly lower scores on PES-NWI and work engagement than those with diplomas. Regarding the subscale of occupational career, scores of forming and coordinating interpersonal relationships, self-development, and accumulating a variety of experience were 3.80, 2.58, and 2.71, respectively. The scores were significantly higher with more than 6 years of nursing experience in Japan than those with 0-3 years or 3-6 years. Conclusion: Most participants had university degrees or higher, and their scores of PES-NWI and work engagement tended to be lower than those with diploma degrees. Participants showed low self-ratings in self-development and lacked a variety of experience. Understanding Chinese nurses' work conditions in Japan enables hospital administrators to develop measures for continuing education and support.

[Conceptual Analysis of Career Anchors of Nurses].

PURPOSE: This study aimed to provide a theoretical basis for career anchors of nurses by defining and organizing its concept. METHODS: Using the Walker and Avant concept analysis, a total of 29 articles were analyzed through a literature search in this study. RESULTS: The career anchors of nurses are individual career choice motives, a self-concept where in competency and values are harmonized, which act as a desire for growth and development in nursing, and are actions that maintain careers. Additionally, they indicate the direction for achieving individual career goals and act as a core value expected of nurses by nursing organizations, indicating continuous and integrated professional growth and development of the nursing profession. CONCLUSION: The career anchors of nurses identified in the results contribute to securing patient safety, providing quality care through policies, institutionalizing bases for career development, preventing nurse turnover, and retaining skilled nurses.

Mentoring Programme: Guiding your first steps towards scientific excellence.

SEMICYUC's first Mentoring Programme aims to support the research careers of the Society's youngest members. Added benefits include acquiring new research and/or clinical skills, increasing the ability of critical thought, and fostering the development of the next generation of research leaders. This project would not be possible without the exceptional team of mentors or research experts willing to embark on the journey with the young trainees. This article sets out the foundations of such a programme and proposes future changes for continuous improvement.

Sponsorship as a double-edged sword: Political contingency and mobility dynamics in the Chinese bureaucracy.

This article develops a theoretical model on the role of sponsorship in organizations as a double-edged sword. We highlight the political nature of sponsorship that is entrenched in formal authority relations, as it signals employee allegiance and affects career advancement through strategic appointments. We further distinguish the effect of sponsorship from that of sponsorship loss, highlighting the precariousness of sponsorship contingency in the face of leadership successions. The negative effect of sponsorship loss is mitigated by diverse networks, however, which dilute the loyalty affiliation to a particular sponsor and provide "robust action." The theoretical model is empirically tested in a study of mobility patterns in a large, multi-layered Chinese bureaucracy of over 32,000 officials during a 19-year period, from 1990 to 2008.

Investigation into the enablers and barriers of career satisfaction among Australian oral health therapists.

OBJECTIVES: This qualitative study explored the enablers and barriers of career satisfaction among Australian oral health therapists (OHTs) and the reasons behind career changes. METHODS: Participants were recruited in 2 ways: 1) recruitment posts were made on the Facebook pages of two professional groups; and 2) an email was sent to the Doctor of Dental Medicine students of the University of Sydney School of Dentistry, inviting those with OHT qualifications to participate. Each participant completed a semi-structured interview which was guided by open-ended questions. The average interview length was 45 min. All interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim and manually coded. Thematic analysis of the qualitative data was completed using an inductive approach. RESULTS: Twenty-one OHTs participated in this study. The enablers of OHT career satisfaction include clinical practice, job variety, career flexibility, being in a supportive team environment and the opportunity for constant learning and growth. The barriers to career satisfaction include musculoskeletal problems, restrictions on the scope of practice use, psychological stress and lack of recognition from others. OHTs remain in the profession due to stable income and employment opportunities. The main reasons for retirement were burnout and pursuing dentistry. OHTs pursue dentistry to expand their scope of practice. CONCLUSION: This study revealed the enablers and barriers of OHT career satisfaction in an Australian context. OHTs are an important component of modern dental workforces, and reasons for attrition within the workforce are essential for maintaining responsiveness to community oral health needs.