Factors influencing healthy role models in medical school to conduct healthy behavior: a qualitative study

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to identify the factors that support or inhibit medical teachers as healthy role models in medical school to conduct healthy behavior. METHODS: This qualitative study involved semi-structured in-depth interviews with medical teachers categorized as healthy role models in a medical school from a previous survey. Ten medical teachers were selected using purposive sampling. Three medical teachers were interviewed by direct meetings, and the remaining were phone interviewed, with one interview facilitated by chat using WhatsApp. Transcribed interviews were coded openly. Themes were finalized through discussion and debate to reach a consensus. RESULTS: Two themes were identified: perceived facilitators and perceived barriers, which were classified into four categories and 13 subcategories: intrinsic facilitators (motivation, conscious awareness, having physical limitations, knowledge, and economic reasons); extrinsic facilitators (the impact on doing a particular job, feedback, time, and environment); intrinsic barriers (the lack of self-motivation and having physical limitations); and extrinsic barriers (the burden of responsibilities for being medical teachers and environment). CONCLUSIONS: Factors that support and inhibit medical teachers as healthy role models in medical school are influenced by intrinsic and extrinsic factors. This result could be used by medical schools to design appropriate interventions to help medical teachers as healthy role models in conducting healthy behavior. More studies are needed to explore other factors that influence medical teachers to conduct healthy behavior. During the COVID-19 pandemic, healthy role models in medical schools are vitally important and significantly contribute to the overall health of a nation.