Faculty interest and barriers to participation in global health education

Background: Global health programs at academic health science centers rely heavily on dedicated faculty for relationship building, host site development, mentoring and teaching. Though faculty are instrumental to the success of global health programs, less is known about the specific characteristics, interests and barriers to global health participation that academic faculty face. Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) Department of Medicine faculty interest, experience, activities and barriers to participation in global health. Methods: We administered an anonymous survey to all Department of Medicine faculty to determine their interest in global health, previous global health experience, global health related activities and barriers to increasing participation. Data was described descriptively. Pearson x2 and logistic regression analyses was performed. Findings: The majority of faculty were interested in global health (69%) and in the following global health activities: education (74%), research (74%), quality improvement/assessment (66%), and non-faith based medical mission trip (64%). The most commonly cited barriers to participation in global health included funding limitations (49%), lack of protected time (39%) and family obligations (39%) Conclusions: Faculty in the Department of Medicine at UTMB expressed high rates of interest in global health activities signifying considerable human capacity for global health. Given the significant barriers to participation of faculty in global health, we must work together as a global health academic community to develop strategies to mitigate funding limitations, protect faculty time and create favorable global health policies.