Professional Attributes Research Articles

Nursing as a Public Trust Profession

Introduction. Nursing is widely recognized as a public trust profession due to its emphasis on professionalism, ethical standards, and patient-centered care. The profession demands adherence to legal regulations and ethical norms, fostering trust through its critical role in healthcare delivery. This study aims to explore patients' perceptions of nursing as a public trust profession, focusing on key factors such as professionalism, ethical compliance, and personal attributes of nurses. Objective. The primary goal of this study was to assess patients' opinions regarding nursing as a public trust profession and identify the specific attributes and competencies that underpin this perception. Methods. The study employed a diagnostic survey method using a structured questionnaire. A total of 100 patients from a healthcare facility in the Mazovian Voivodeship participated. Statistical analyses, including descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, t-tests, ANOVA, correlation analyses, and factor analysis, were conducted using IBM SPSS 29. Results. The findings revealed that 95% of respondents identified professionalism and high engagement in care as crucial factors for trust. Empathy and compassion were also rated highly (95%), along with confidentiality (90%). The chi-square test showed significant differences in the perception of professionalism (Chi2 = 140.80, P < 0.001), and ANOVA demonstrated the impact of nurses' attitudes on trust (F = 116.93, P < 0.001). Factor analysis indicated that professionalism and engagement were the primary components influencing trust perceptions, explaining 100% of variance. Conclusions. Professionalism, ethical conduct, and interpersonal skills are pivotal in establishing nursing as a public trust profession. These attributes are essential for patient trust and align with global standards in nursing practice. The study underscores the need to maintain high ethical and professional standards to sustain public trust in the profession.

“Busting the hidden curriculum” a realist and innovative perspective to foster professional behaviors

Contemporary health professions education has long delineated the desired attributes of medical professionalism in the form of standard curricula and their role in forming professional behaviors (PBs) among aspiring doctors. However, existing research has shown the contradictory and powerful role of hidden curriculum (HC) in negatively influencing medical students’ PBs through unspoken or implicit academic, cultural, or social standards and practices. These contrasting messages of formal curricula and HC lead to discordance and incongruence in future healthcare professionals developing professional identity formation. There is little research on PB modifying educational strategies and their determinants that medical schools adopt to bust the impact of HC. Consequently, it is unclear how the right PBs can be influenced, entrenched, and inculcated in undergraduate medical students, especially in their early clinical placements. The lack of such insight highlights a critical gap in the literature, nudging educators to take a realist stance to deal with this problem. Behavior psychology stresses shaping medical students’ values and beliefs as salient mediators that influence intentions to pursue future PBs. Curiosity prevails about what would guide the educational interventions to target this behavior change. To help understand this concept, we present our design-based innovative perspective about PROfessionalism in Partnership for Education Research (PROPER) shaped by pluralistic theoretical models in the context of two European medical schools with diverse medical students, highlighting its non-parochial and transferable nature.

Principal Competency, Teacher Readiness, and Teacher Commitment in STEM Education Implementation: A Qualitative Study

The growing emphasis on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education in schools demands strong leadership and teacher commitment for effective implementation. However, challenges related to principal competency, teacher readiness, and their commitment have been identified as major obstacles to achieving desired outcomes through STEM initiatives. This qualitative study explores the competencies of school principals, teacher readiness, and the commitment required for successful STEM education. It aims to identify the principal competencies that influence teacher readiness and commitment, as well as the elements of teacher readiness that affect their commitment, and the specific aspects of teacher commitment crucial for STEM implementation. The study employs semi-structured interviews with teachers from selected schools, analyzed using thematic analysis to identify themes related to leadership competency, teacher preparedness, and commitment. Findings reveal that principals with competencies in STEM knowledge, management skills, and professional attributes are more likely to boost teacher readiness and commitment. Teacher readiness, particularly in terms of knowledge, skills, and attitude, plays a vital role in strengthening their commitment. Teacher commitment is driven by affective, continuance, and normative commitment, which are critical for STEM success. In conclusion, the study highlights the need to develop leadership competencies and teacher readiness as key strategies to enhance teacher commitment in STEM education. These findings have significant implications for education policy and professional development, calling for targeted interventions to support school leaders and teachers in effectively implementing STEM education.

Development of a dynamic clinical assessment for finals

Different dental schools assess ‘finals' in different ways. Assessment of applied clinical knowledge and skills are commonly based on either objective structured clinical examinations or multiple ‘long cases'. While iterative changes naturally occur throughout education and assessment, it is important to step back and question what skills should be assessed and either identify or develop new assessment methods. At the point of graduation, these should capture the professional attributes expected of a ‘qualified dentist'. New graduate attributes we consider valuable, which can often be challenging to assess summatively in a high-stakes examination, include effective communication skills in a variety of contexts, the ability to be reactive and responsive, and to manage case complexity appropriately for the graduate level.Here, we report a dynamic assessment incorporating candidate interaction with a range of stakeholders. To reflect progression of changing clinical situations, we move away from solely traditional case-based discussions, which principally assess interaction with an examiner, and have introduced multiple scenarios with rapid situation changes, long-term follow-up, treatment complications and challenging communications. A cross-cutting assessment rubric was developed to assess candidates' information gathering/giving, communication, clinical and diagnostic reasoning, applied knowledge, management and professionalism.

Perspectives of midwives on respectful maternity care

BackgroundRespectful maternity care forms the foundation of maternity services; however, delivery of dignified, efficient, and effective care in these settings remains inconsistent. Research has identified several factors that influence respectful maternity care. To understand the South African context, these factors were explored and described from the perspectives of midwives. MethodsA qualitative descriptive inquiry was conducted, with participants recruited through snowball sampling on the social networking site Facebook. Semi-structured questions were used to collect data, to which participants responded in writing, detailing factors that influenced respectful care, including words and practices they associated with respectful maternity care. The data was analyzed using content analysis to identify common categories.ResultsTwenty-five responses from participants were analyzed; four categories and six sub-categories emerged as representations of respectful maternity care. The categories and sub-categories were as follows: healthcare professional behavior (ethical conduct and professional attributes related to education and training), managerial support (conducive work environment), interpersonal facet of care (characteristics of healthcare providers), and the birth environment (caring within the birth environment and client-centered care).ConclusionMidwives emphasized the importance of understanding respectful maternity care to ensure optimal outcomes for women, families, and communities. However, given the complexity of maternity care, it is crucial for policymakers, administrators, and midwives to comprehend and appreciate the various elements that define respectful care, as this understanding can significantly enhance its successful implementation.

Decoding the interplay of medical professionalism, mental well-being, and coping in undergraduate medical students across culture: using structural equation modeling.

The rigorous nature of medical education, long and night shifts, and prevalent issues like stress, anxiety, and depression affect medical students' mental well-being and medical professionalism. This study aims to explore the intricate relationships between mental well-being, medical professionalism, and coping strategies, among undergraduate medical students, utilizing structural equation modeling (SEM) to unravel these dynamics. Conducted at Universiti Sains Malaysia, this cross-sectional study involved 234 medical students from the 1st, 3rd, and 5th years of the MBBS program. Data were collected via five validated survey instruments: DASS-9, TEQ, Dundee, Brief COPE, and CBI, through Google Forms. Participants were selected using purposive sampling. The surveys assessed mental well-being (burnout, anxiety, depression, stress), coping strategies, and medical professionalism attributes. Model fit was evaluated using established indices. Findings indicated that professional behavior reduces burnout and negatively impacts negative coping strategies (NCSs). Additionally, medical professionalism indirectly enhances empathy and positively influences CSs. Conversely, psychological distress increases NCSs and reduces empathy. Positive coping strategies (PCSs) enhance empathy levels, while MWB issues elevate NCSs. The study underscores the vital role of professional behavior in mitigating burnout and fostering positive coping mechanisms among medical students. Addressing MWB issues through targeted interventions can enhance empathy and professional behavior, ultimately improving the quality of patient care.

Students Perception on Soft Skills in Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Swadaya Gunung Jati, Cirebon, Indonesia

Background: Soft skills is important attributes of professionalism in the practice of medicine. Soft skills to be known as person's ability beyond knowledge, intelligence, or competence. Faculty of Medicine in Universitas Swadaya Gunung Jati, Cirebon, Indonesia, has used various learning methods to support students' skills, allowing students to have different perspectives in understanding soft skills. Aims: To identify the perception of medical students at Faculty of Medicine, Swadaya Gunung Jati University, in the pre-clinical stage towards soft skills. Methods: This was an observational descriptive study. Respondents were selected using Stratified Random Sampling techniques, sample size was 262 respondents were obtained from semester 2, 4, 6 and 8. This study used primary data with 42 statement items with univariate analysis. Results: From 262 respondents, of 93.1% students (244) have a good perception of the definition of soft skills. As many as 50.4% (123) of 262 respondents have a good perception of time management. As many as 81.3% (213) of 262 respondents have a good perception of critical thinking. 73.7% (193) of 262 respondents have a good perception of teamwork. As many as 87.4% (229) of 262 respondents have a good perception of public speaking. Conclusion: This study showed medical student perception of soft skills regarding definition, time management skills, critical thinking, teamwork, and public speaking had a good perception. In the future, Faculty needs to provide space for students to develop these soft skills through training or interprofessional education and other programs. Received: 10 September 2024 | Reviewed: 16 October 2024 | Revised: 23 October 2024 | Accepted: 31 October 2024.

Revisiting the conceptualisation and implications of medicine's 'hidden curriculum'.

In medical training and practice, our professional attributes, attitudes, perceptions, character traits and identities are fundamentally shaped by our lived experiences and observations in clinical and para-clinical settings instead of being inculcated through formal curriculum or classroom teaching. For instance, clinical acumen, communication skills and bedside manners are learnt through role modelling and experiential learning in the course of clinical rotations. Likewise, one's attitudes, professional behaviours and inclinations are often also influenced by direct/indirect observations of the actions of others in the medical fraternity in various clinical and non-clinical settings. This is also what is often termed as the 'hidden curriculum' of medicine. In this article, we sought to provide a practical conceptualisation of the hidden curriculum in medical training, which we describe as lived experiences and personal observations of medical trainees and residents in clinical and para-clinical spaces, which shape their perceptions of the medical profession (vocational identity and purpose), patients (patient-physician relationship) and colleagues (intra- and inter-professional relationships), with downstream implications on physician well-being and clinical decision-making. Although this idea of a 'hidden curriculum' has conventionally carried predominantly negative connotations in medical literature, we suggest that it is an inevitable part of medical education and practice, which, through deliberate regulation, can potentially be shaped to create more positive and meaningful effects in the professional development of medical trainees.

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

The objective of this work is to understand the economic, social, cultural, political, legal, and financial differences that require strategic planning for the internationalization of organizational activities. The methodology used was bibliographic, with a qualitative approach. Internationalization is an innovative aspect for the survival of organizations, and it should be a process guided by the economic, political, social, cultural, financial, and legal differences of the country where internationalization is sought, while also requiring a manager profile with specific personal, organizational, and professional attributes to overcome challenges in these aspects and avoid failures. The planning of internationalization should include various decision-making strategies on how to enter this market, such as mergers/acquisitions and foreign direct investment, both of which have advantages and disadvantages that should be analyzed concerning cost/benefit relationships and threats/opportunities for small, medium, and large organizations as well as emerging ones. Successful cases of internationalization of Brazilian companies contribute to this process, such that the competition of globalized companies emerges as a line of thought that enables their survival in terms of competitive strategies.

Paediatric family activation rapid response (FARR) in acute care: a qualitative study for developing a multilingual application (app) intervention

BackgroundDelayed recognition of clinical deterioration can result in harm to patients. Parents/carers can often recognise changes in the child’s condition before healthcare professionals (HCPs). To mitigate the risk of failure...

Entering the agricultural education professorate: Hiring authorities’ perceptions of tenure-track faculty needs

The purpose of this Delphi study was to identify the competencies needed by first-year, tenure-track faculty in the profession of agricultural education and its related specializations (i.e., teacher education, Extension education, leadership development, and agricultural communication) as perceived by hiring authorities. The expert panel was composed of 31 individuals across 25 states who were hiring authorities of agricultural education faculty. At the completion of the third round, there were a total of 52 competencies that reached consensus with the panel. The competencies were situated into three thematic categories: (a) professional skills, (b) technical skills, and (c) personal attributes. A visual framework, including the competencies, categories, and subcategories is presented. We recommend that this framework be used by graduate programs of agricultural education and related specializations as a potential framework for evaluating their programming. The time is ripe for a profession-wide conversation around the development and preparation of future faculty, and how to establish a community of scholars. Future research should be conducted to examine the best practices, such as mentorship and collaboration, to sustain and support faculty over their career and how such practices may be effectively implemented across the agricultural education professorate.

More Than Body Parts: A New Ethos of Anatomy Education

Abstract A new ethos of anatomy education goes beyond the learning of body parts in the traditional curriculum. In the traditional curriculum, the focus of only providing information on the structure of the human body left certain learning opportunities overlooked, marginalized, or dismissed as irrelevant; thus, opportunities to foster and shape professional attributes in health care learners were lost. Furthermore, changes in curricula structures and reductions in anatomy teaching hours have necessitated a transformation in how anatomy education is perceived and delivered. This article presents an examination of a contemporary ethos of anatomy education that draws together concepts from teaching theory, educational trends, and emerging research to maximize the anatomy learning experience with body donors. Social constructivism, the spiral curriculum, and the hidden curriculum can be leveraged to facilitate a unique educational experience. Furthermore, contemporary perspectives on the ethics and history of anatomy that support contextual learning indicate how these subjects are well suited to authenticate and consolidate learning, while supporting the relational and humanistic delivery of health care education. When anatomy education is conceptualized as a first clinical experience in a health care curriculum, it provides the opportunity to develop and enhance professional identity formation at a foundational stage. By embracing and incorporating a wider range of considerations into educational practice, a new ethos for anatomy education fosters history-informed professional identity formation that offers transformative learning opportunities for an ethical practice in the art of healing.

Nursing Practice Environments in Hospitals: A Comparative Study between Portugal and Brazil.

Background: Assessing the elements of nursing practice environments is crucial, as investing in their improvement will enhance outcomes for nurses, patients, and organizations. Moreover, comparing practice environments from different countries improves the definition of cross-cutting guidelines that can be applied in various contexts. Thus, this study aims to evaluate nursing practice environments in hospitals in Portugal and Brazil. Methods: A multicenter and cross-sectional study was conducted in eight Portuguese and eight Brazilian hospitals. Five hundred eighty-two nurses completed a survey regarding their sociodemographic and professional attributes, as well as the Scale for the Environments Evaluation of Professional Nursing Practice. The data were subjected to comparative analyses between the two countries. We adhered to ethical requirements in both participating countries. Results: In Brazil, the Structure, Process, and Outcome components were considered favorable to the quality of care and well-being of nurses. In Portugal, nurses considered the Structure and Outcome components favorable and the Process component very favorable. Statistically significant differences were found between the two countries in several dimensions of the three subscales. The Structure and Outcome components scored significantly better in hospitals in Brazil, and the Process component scored better in Portuguese hospitals. Conclusions: These conclusions underscore the urgent need for investment in continuous training and a culture of evaluation that promotes continuous improvement. Additionally, promoting the involvement and participation of nurses could simultaneously contribute to the development of more sustainable health systems.

Nurses' perceptions regarding their own professionalism attributes to quality neonatal, infant and under-5 childcare.

Professional nurses are trained to provide quality care. Despite the professional nurses' acquired skill and professionalism attributes, the neonate, infant, and under-5-child mortality rates are high in sub-Saharan Africa. This health care report indicates that sub-Saharan Africa countries face a challenge in reaching the Sustainable Development Goal number 3 by the year 2030 (that is, ensuring healthy lives and reducing the mortality rates of children under 5). It has been reported that professionalism in nursing can improve the quality of care and positively change the health outcomes. This study employed a qualitative exploratory, descriptive design to explore and describe professional nurses' own professionalism attributes to provide quality care to neonates, infants, and under-5 children in the North West province in South Africa. Eight naïve sketches of an all-inclusive sample of invited professional nurses (N = 25; n = 8) were received. The naïve sketch questions were based on the Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario's professionalism attributes. Tesch's eight steps of data-analysis were used, with an independent coder's assistance. The categories included (1) knowledge, (2) spirit of inquiry, (3) accountability, (4) autonomy, (5) advocacy, (6) collegiality and collaboration, (7) ethics and values, and (8) professional reputation, and each category generated sub-themes. Professional nurses are aware of their own professionalism attributes in quality of care of neonates, infants and under-5 children; the 'innovation and visionary' attribute did not emerge, which should receive more attention to strengthen quality care. However, a new attribute, 'professional reputation', reflecting a South African culture-orientated attribute, emerged from the data collected.

Challenges of entrepreneurship in nursing: A narrative review

With the expansion of the global healthcare business market, nursing entrepreneurship is also expected to grow. The concept of entrepreneurship in nursing is linked to personal and professional attributes such as independence, flexibility, creativity, confidence, and responsibility. The challenges of entrepreneurship in nursing are categorized into three main areas: traditional nursing education perspectives, individual factors, and lack of support. The first challenge, traditional nursing education, includes subcategories like the absence of student start-ups, the lack of entrepreneurial content in nursing curricula, entrepreneurial knowledge among nursing educators, and the non-practical nature of nursing research in entrepreneurship. The second challenge involves individual factors, which include risk aversion, low self-belief, resistance to change, lack of knowledge, conflicting ideas, and lack of perseverance. It's important to note that perseverance is vital to overcoming these challenges. The third challenge is the lack of social support for nursing entrepreneurship, which includes subcategories like job burnout and unprofessional behavior from peers. Based on the results of this study, nursing curricula must be reviewed, with greater emphasis placed on entrepreneurship during postgraduate education. Increasing entrepreneurial knowledge and skills among nurses can enhance problem-solving abilities and risk-taking in nursing. This, in turn, can increase motivation and job satisfaction in nursing.

A Study of the Impact of the Quality of Life of Female Iraqi Surgeons on their Work Performance

Introduction: The percentage of women among medical students has grown lately in developed and developing nations; nevertheless, females generally stay under-represented in surgery. This investigation has studied female surgeons' professional and social attributes in Iraq and their perception of the operating conditions. Materials and methods: During the period beginning on the first of March 2021 and ending on the first of May 2021, a cross-sectional study was conducted ,22-page electronic survey was mailed to all surgical females that was working in different hospital in Iraq , and Data was entered and investigated using Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 25. Illustrative investigations were described as frequencies and percentages, and outcomes were compared between the subjects. Results: A total of 64 female doctors from different surgical branches enrolled in the study; most of them (82.8%) belonged to the 25- 34 years age group, were married and having children (54.7%), working 40 - 80 hours in a week, gynecologists (39.1%) followed by general surgeons (23.4%) and interest (67.2%) was the main drive and reason for choosing their surgical branch. Conclusion: Women's Chances in surgery have improved, although extensive work remains to make the surgical workplace comfortable for females.

Exploring a role for community pharmacists in the identification of alcohol-related liver disease: a qualitative interview study with professionals, patients, and the public.

To explore the views and attitudes of professionals, patients and the public to a role for community pharmacists in the identification of alcohol-related liver disease (ArLD). Semi-structured interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of patients with ArLD, members of the public, pharmacy staff, and clinicians managing patients with ArLD across the Wessex region of south England. The interviews explored experiences of alcohol, ArLD and health advice in pharmacies and elicited views of what a pharmacist role in identifying ArLD could entail and factors influencing this. Transcripts were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Twenty-six participants were interviewed and three themes were generated: (i) acknowledging, seeking help and engaging with a hidden problem; (ii) professional roles, boundaries and attributes; (iii) communication, relationships, collaboration and support. Participants reported key challenges to identifying people at-risk of ArLD. Offering testing for ArLD was perceived to motivate engagement but there were concerns about pharmacists performing this. A role was mostly seen to be finding people at-risk and engaging them with further care such as referral to liver services. This was perceived to require developing interprofessional collaborations, remuneration and training for pharmacy staff, and community-based liver testing. Professionals, patient and public participants recognized a role for pharmacists in the identification of ArLD. This was envisaged to incorporate educating pharmacy users about ArLD risk, and identifying and directly engaging those at-risk with liver and support services through development of interprofessional collaborations. The findings of this study support and can inform future work to develop this role.

Using natural language processing approaches to characterize professional experiences of child welfare workers

High turnover rates among child welfare workers, including caseworkers and supervisors, are associated with negative attitudes and perceptions about work (NAPW). Our study aimed to (a) explore how child welfare workers’ demographic characteristics, professional attributes, and their work narratives are related to NAPW and (b) extract themes from these narratives to understand their professional needs and concerns. In 2022, a statewide online survey was administered to active child welfare caseworkers and supervisors in a large Midwestern state. This survey, combining standardized scales and an open-ended question about work experiences, yielded numeric (N = 551 survey respondents) and text data (N = 2,193 words). We analyzed the numeric data using general linear modeling and the text data using natural language processing (NLP) techniques. Results showed that workers associated with higher NAPW were female, younger, from racial and ethnic minority backgrounds, less tenured, and more likely to be employed in public agencies and to work longer hours. They are predominantly caseworkers rather than supervisors. Worker role and agency affiliation had the largest effect sizes. NLP analysis showed that workers with more NAPW frequently used third-person pronouns and emotionally negative language, suggesting a disconnection from colleagues and job dissatisfaction. Caseworkers often used first-person singular pronouns, indicating feelings of isolation. Two key themes emerged: a) the need for better agency support during home visits and b) concerns over traumatic experiences and ineffective trauma-informed practices. The findings suggest that future interventions should prioritize the well-being of caseworkers in public agencies and consider language patterns in workers’ narratives to understand their vulnerability to NAPW.

Priorities and Incentives for the Mobility of Russian IT Specialists

Introduction. The mobility of IT specialists differs from the mobility of all other socioprofessional groups. The study of mobility is relevant, since the movement of IT specialists significantly affects the peculiarities of the formation of the digital space, the success of many types of activities of modern society, and its prospects. Sociology has accumulated a scientific foundation for covering mobility based on new research principles, which makes it possible to identify specific characteristics of the mobility of IT specialists.Methodology and sources. The conceptual theoretical and methodological positions of the study are represented by a complex of ideas, the basis of which is the work of P.A. Sorokin and his followers a bout the essence of mobility. The article is based on ideas a bout the mobile society formulated in the works of D. Urry, M. Castells, B. Latour, K. Knorr-Cetina, and the provisions of the works of D.V. Ivanov about new forms of integration of the digital and streaming society, where the mobility of IT specialists begins to play a new, more important role. A number of sources were used, where attention was paid to the analysis of the mobility of Russian IT specialists as a phenomenon reflecting the characteristics of their movements in the conditions of modern Russian society.Results and discussion. Two main results of the study show, firstly, that the professional component of the mobility of IT specialists is an active beginning of movements and changes – their mobility. Ultimately, the professional mobility of IT specialists is aimed at finding the most suitable social environment that allows them to successfully implement their professional activities. Secondly, it was revealed that the specifics of the work activities of IT specialists form the motivation for changes and movements, where personal interests can be very significant and do not always coincide with the interests of IT organizations.Conclusion. Analysis of the generalized materials allows us to characterize some prospects and incentives for the mobility of Russian IT specialists, to formulate the author’s definition of mobility as a phenomenon determined by the social and professional attributes of the digital space, as well as the goals of mobility, as achieving the most adequate conditions for professional self-realization, as well as ensuring preservation and correction professional identity in the IT space.

A Content Analysis of Health Library Support for Australian Medical Training Programs

ABSTRACT Health libraries play a critical role in supporting medical training in Australia. Accreditation is an important means of ensuring a program of study and the education provider suitably equips trainees with the knowledge, skills and professional attributes necessary to practice in the profession. This study identifies a lack of consistency and specificity in Australian medical colleges accreditation requirements as they pertain to health libraries. The recommended accreditation standard developed in this study provides a benchmark for training providers that will ensure consistency of access to high-quality library collections, services and spaces for all medical trainees. Accreditation standards from 52 medical colleges and associations supporting Australian medical training programs were reviewed. Information extracted from accreditation documents was entered into a working text spreadsheet. Data was organized under three key categories: Collections, Services and Space. Additional categories were added to record the use of the noun Library and expectations for journal access. A data extraction tool was created in Microsoft Excel to note the requirements of each provider for libraries and collections, services and spaces. The results of the content analysis highlight a lack of consistency in accreditation providers’ expectations for library collections, services and spaces. Most providers (87% n = 45) required host organizations to provide access to collections. Requirements for library space were mandated by 54% of providers (n = 28). Less than 50% of providers (n = 22) specified library services as requirements. This content analysis highlights the role of health libraries in supporting medical education, research and evidence-based practice. It also reinforces the need for improved specificity, consistency and clarity in accreditation requirements for health libraries in post-graduate medical training. The recommended benchmark accreditation standard developed in this study is a step toward addressing these issues and ensuring equity of access to library services and facilities for all medical trainees in Australia.