Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38708745›Full record

ArticleSouth African family practice : official journal of the South African Academy of Family Practice/Primary Care2024

Registrars' experience with research in family medicine training programmes in South Africa.

Emcy Louw, Robert J Mash

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in South African family practice : official journal of the South African Academy of Family Practice/Primary Care, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. The career pathways of new family physicians in South Africa from 2008 to 2022.South African family practice : official journal of the South African Academy of Family Practice/Primary Care · 2024
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

2 authors.

Emcy LouwDivision of Family Medicine and Primary Care, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town. emcylouw@gmail.com.
Robert J Mash

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundCompletion of a research assignment is a requirement for specialist training in South Africa. Difficulty with completion delays graduation and the supply of family physicians. The aim of this study was to explore the experience of registrars with their research in postgraduate family medicine training programmes.

methodsAn explorative descriptive qualitative study. Extreme case purposive sampling selected registrars who had and had not completed their research on time, from all nine training programmes. Saturation was achieved after 12 semi-structured interviews. The framework method was used for data analysis, assisted by ATLAS.ti software.

resultsThe assumption of prior learning by teachers and supervisors contributed to a sense of being overwhelmed and stressed. Teaching modules should be more standardised and focussed on the practical tasks and skills, rather than didactic theory. Lengthy provincial and ethics processes, and lack of institutional support, such as scholarly services and financial support, caused delays. The expertise of the supervisor was important, and the registrar-supervisor relationship should be constructive, collaborative and responsive. The individual research experience was dependent on choosing a feasible project and having dedicated time. The balancing of personal, professional and academic responsibilities was challenging.

conclusionTraining programmes should revise the teaching of research and improve institutional processes. Supervisors need to become more responsive, with adequate expertise. Provincial support is needed for streamlined approval and dedicated research time.Contribution: The study highlights ways in which teaching, and completion of research can be improved, to increase the supply of family physicians to the country.

Indexed as

Family PracticeAdultAttitude of Health PersonnelBiomedical ResearchEducation, Medical, GraduateFemaleHumansInterviews as TopicMaleQualitative ResearchSouth Africagraduate educationmedical residencypostgraduate trainingresearchresearch activities

Identifiers

PMID38708745
PMCPMC11079345

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.