Dispositional Humility Of Clinicians In An Interprofessional Primary Care Environment: A Mixed Methods Study

OBJECTIVES: Dispositional humility in professionals is a character trait that allows one to monitor self-centered occupational drive and to pay attention to the needs of other professionals. The aim of this study is to test whether or not clinicians working in interprofessional team care environments identify the character trait of humility as an important factor for successful collaborative relationships. This study aimed to revise a concept map of dispositional humility created through literature review. DESIGN: An explanatory sequential mixed-methods study was composed of the HEXACO personality test and the Integrative Medicine Attitude Questionnaire, followed by summative and directed content analyses of one-on-one interview data in order to identify the element of dispositional humility. SETTING: In the State of Washington, USA, where physicians (MD/DO), nurse practitioners (NP) and naturopathic clinicians (ND) serve Medicaid patients in community clinics. PARTICIPANTS: 6 MDs, 4 NPs, and 11 NDs. RESULTS: Twenty-one primary care clinicians were enrolled. Fifteen clinicians completed the interview. It was observed that the: 1) honesty-humility trait (p<0.01), conscientiousness (&p<0.01), and openness to experience (p<0.05) domains of primary care clinicians were statistically significantly higher than the reference standards; 2) attitudes toward integrative medicine did not differentiate the different clinician types; and 3) qualitative data supported the component of dispositional humility as a desirable trait in professionals with whom they would like to work. CONCLUSION: To maintain high-quality patient care while working as a team, limiting self-interest while focusing on the needs of others may be necessary and in the best interest of patients. An attitude of accepting the principles of integrative medicine has permeated this sample of primary healthcare workers. Both quantitative and qualitative analyses revealed that humility was viewed as an important character trait for successful interprofessional collaboration. A revised concept map of dispositional humility to enhance collaborative relationships was created.