Barriers to the implementation of research priorities in medical education from the point of view of medical education experts at Shiraz University of Medical Sciences: A qualitative study

To determine the barriers to the implementation of research priorities in medical education from the viewpoint of educational experts. The qualitative study was conducted at Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran, from April to October 2016, and comprised medical education professors and experts working at the university's Education Development Centre. These professors had Master degree or PhD in medical education. Content analysis method was used after data was collected using semi-structured interviews followed by focus group discussions. There were 22 academicians in the study. Four themes, each with some sub-themes, were extracted out of the 86 codes derived from the interviews. The themes were: general priorities in educational research, lack of a comprehensive educational research database in medical sciences, discrimination among departments concerning budget, and the lack of the research spirit and teamwork were more prominent. Based on these themes, barriers identified fell in the two categories: manpower and financial resources. The barriers can partly be eliminated through modifying the mentality and attitude toward research and teamwork in the university, proper planning in the budget of the educational field and managing the university research system.