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Project design and implementation, applied to real life situations, is emerging as an educational strategy for application of health professions faculty development learning within a supportive environment.We conducted a retrospective analysis of project evolution to identify common experiences, challenges, and successful strategies of 54 mid-career faculty members from 18 developing countries who attended the Foundation for the Advancement of International Medical Education and Research Institute between 2001 and 2006 and designed, conducted, and evaluated education innovations at their home institutions.Chronological analysis of the evolution of 54 projects over the initial 16-18 months of the 2-year Fellowship was based on an iterative qualitative analysis of 324 reports and individual interview transcripts collected over 6 years.Useful skill areas for project implementation included educational methods, leadership and management, and relationships/collaboration. Common challenges included competing responsibilities, lack of protected time, and limited resources. Themes identified with the evolution and success of education innovation projects included leadership and organization, collaboration, personal professional growth, and awareness of the relevant societal context.Common challenges and success factors in project-based faculty development were identified. Twelve practical strategies to promote successful project-based faculty development emerged that can be generalized for faculty development.

Projects are an important tool in faculty development, and project emphasis may offer insights into perceived education priorities. Impact of projects has been focused on individuals, not institutions or health.Education innovation projects of Fellows in an international faculty development program were examined to better understand perceived needs in health professions education and institutional impact of projects.Four hundred and thirty-five projects were analyzed to identify focus areas. Fellows were asked to identify changes in their schools and communities resulting from their projects.New education methods and curriculum change were common project focus areas. Regional differences were evident with a higher percentage of education methods projects by Fellows residing in India (52%), compared with South Africa (25%) and Brazil (24%). Fifty-six percent of projects were incorporated into the curriculum and/or incorporated as institutional policy. One-third to two-thirds of respondents noted improved teaching quality, collaboration, education research interest, assessment, student performance, and curriculum alignment with community health needs.National differences in project focus may offer insight into local conditions and needs. High rates of diffusion of projects and impact on faculty, students, and curriculum suggest that faculty development projects may be a strategy for institutional change in resource limited environments.

While there are many examples of evaluations of faculty development programs in resource rich countries, evaluation of transnational programs for faculty from developing countries is limited. We describe evaluation of the effects of the FAIMER Institute, an international health professions education fellowship that incorporates not only education content, but also leadership and management topics and, in addition, strives to develop a sustained community of educators. Data were obtained via retrospective pre/post surveys, as well as interviews. Results indicate that participating health professions faculty from developing countries are augmenting their knowledge and skills in education leadership, management, and methodology, and applying that knowledge at their home institutions. Fellows' perceptions of importance of, and their own competence in, all curriculum theme areas increased. Interviews confirmed a nearly universal gain of at least one leadership skill. Findings suggest that the high-engagement experience of the FAIMER model offering integration of education and leadership/management tools necessary to implement change, provides knowledge and skills which are useful across cultural and national contexts and results in the development of a supportive, global, professional network.

Education innovations by health professions faculty are shaped by faculty conceptualizations of the pathway between their innovations and changes in health of communities.We aimed to explore how existing theories about the relationship between education and health are attended to, interpreted, and applied by faculty in different national contexts.We compared existing theoretical frameworks to perceptions of "front line" faculty. Fellows in Brazil- and India-based FAIMER faculty development programs were asked via questionnaires about the contribution of their education innovation projects to health improvements.Faculty identified pathways to improved societal health via increased quality, and to a lesser extent relevance, of education. Relationships between increased quantity of education and improved health were focused on faculty development. Faculty from both countries noted the value for health outcomes of innovations that affect networks and partnerships with other institutions. Faculty from India identified pathways to improved societal health via changes to instructional more than institutional processes.Results indicate where there are gaps in existing theories, a need to raise awareness about potential pathways to improving health via education changes, and opportunities for more detailed understanding of mechanisms of change via in-depth research.