Workplace diversity promotion needs among medical school/university workers: A cross-sectional study using mixed-methods

Abstract

Objectives: Promoting diversity in medical schools/university workplaces is a pressing issue. However, the needs of medical school/university workers, including nonmedical staff, remain unclear. This report aimed to identify the specific needs of medical school/university workers to promote diversity using open-ended descriptions. Methods: This cross-sectional survey included 168 individuals who responded to open-ended questions in a questionnaire administered by the Diversity Promotion Office of Fukushima Medical University in July 2021. Data collection included basic demographics, such as sex, age, and affiliation, and an open-ended descriptions of workers’ desired workplace diversity. Open-coding categorized responses into 13 categories. The association between affiliation and these categories was examined using the χ² or Fisher’s exact test. Results: Of the categories, “personnel deployment to optimize existing support” (requiring staffing to make the best use of existing support systems) was statistically prevalent among the workers in administrative offices (p < .001), and “work-life balance in the organization” (promoting diversity in the organization as a whole for a better work-life balance among employees) was statistically prevalent among those in the hospital (p = .002). Conclusions: Considering that many of administrative office workers are women, “personnel deployment to optimize existing support” may reflect the psychological situation of female workers who want staffing to enable them to use support systems appropriately and with ease. Regarding “work-life balance in the organization,” hospital medical staff may have developed a perspective on improving work-life balance and promoting diversity in the organization as a whole because of frequent exposure to information on work improvement measures in professional associations. Implementation of evidence-based diversity policies from the perspective of evidence-based management is essential for Japanese university medical schools.