The work of deans of medicine
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2007
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Abstract
This dissertation studies the work done by deans of medicine as agents in the field of academic medicine. In this study, I use Pierre Bourdieu's theory of field-habitus-capital to examine how the field of academic medicine developed in Canada and how the position of dean of medicine emerged within that field. I interviewed 14 current and past deans of Canadian medical schools. In addition, I interviewed several faculty members, senior university administrators and one other physician executive who was not affiliated with a medical school. The interviews were semi-structured, lasted anywhere from 60 to 90 minutes and were mostly by telephone. Canada's earliest medical schools were a combination of university and non-university proprietary schools. Academic medicine in Canada began at McGill University in the early nineteenth century. The position of dean of medicine emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Canada. Initially the person who was called a dean of medicine was often the oldest physician in the group. By the end of the nineteenth century, academic medicine was well established in Canada's two largest provinces - Quebec and Ontario - and a McGill habitus had emerged. Today, a dean of medicine is a dominant position in the health and academic fields. Social capital - the capital of social connections and obligation - plays an important role in bringing a deanship to some players rather than others. Those physicians who have been a department head, especially of internal medicine, or those physicians who were mentored by a previous dean, appear to be more likely to become dean of medicine. Mastering strategies of obsequiousness - knowing one's place and modesty about accomplishments - nepotism and team spirit are important for success in the field. During the search and selection process, displaying a habitus that shows the candidate has a well-developed feel for the game is important for success and how the candidate expresses a vision for the future of the faculty is the principal way in which this decanal habitus is demonstrated. Much of a dean's work has to do with managing crises that threaten the faculty. The search for economic capital is their consistent preoccupation. Overall, becoming a dean of medicine appears to be a matter of fulfilling a destiny in the field.
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Bibliography: p. 277-286
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Citation
Lynch, T. (2007). The work of deans of medicine (Doctoral thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. doi:10.11575/PRISM/1017