Increased engagement at the Disciplinary Domain – together we strengthen the collegiality

The investigation into strengthened collegiality – which the college has developed and which the working group has summarised – has highlighted different perspectives on what is central to trust in the collegial system and its future at the Disciplinary Domain of Medicine and Pharmacy. The Disciplinary Domain Board (ON) approved the proposals for measures on 18 June, which means that the work to develop and implement the proposals will continue. Initially, eight development areas with concrete packages of measures will be presented in a printed document that will be distributed during the autumn.

“The packages of measures aim to ensure knowledge transfer and to highlight incentives for more colleagues in the Disciplinary Domain to get involved and to introduce and include new colleagues in the collegial system. The measures should also guarantee collegial principles for the management and decision-making of issues related to research and education in the field of science”, says Pernilla Åsenlöf, Vice Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, who has led the working group’s process.

Packages of measures linked to eight areas of development

The actions that have been proposed can be linked to eight areas of development and are presented below (in no particular order).

Information, communication and education

Knowledge and understanding of the collegial system need to increase. It is often difficult for individuals to gain an overview of how the University and the Disciplinary Domain are organised, how decisions are made. Therefore, the Disciplinary Domain needs to actively disseminate information about the importance of collegial participation, especially in preparation for the elections for the next term.

Stronger matching between assignments and interested parties

The Disciplinary Domain needs to improve its ability to match collegial assignments that need to be performed, with people who may be interested in performing them. It is important to work more systematically to find individuals who want to take on collegial assignments. Many are unaware of which assignments are available or how to express their interest. One proposed measure is to create a database to match assignments and interested individuals.

Regeneration and incentives

There is much to be done to strengthen collegial identity and improve regeneration for collegial assignments, not least by reviewing incentive structures. The Disciplinary Domain needs to create and promote a culture where collegial participation is seen as natural, desirable and clearly rewarding, and where it is a given that older colleagues are responsible for helping, supporting and mentoring younger colleagues in the collegial system. Therefore, it is important that collegial engagement is highlighted in employee discussions, salary negotiations, and as part of career planning.

Sustainable and attractive collegial management assignments

Collegial management assignments, research, and teaching must be combinable. It is important that collegial leadership assignments can be reconciled with an active and successful academic career. Those who take on a leadership assignment must be able to maintain a certain level of scientific activity and contact with their own research group/activities, and be confident that this will not put an end to their own research and teaching. For this reason, there must be regular rotation of the assignments to increase engagement, and give more colleagues the opportunity to contribute and take responsibility.

Developed forms for preparation and decision-making

In order to increase engagement and participation, particularly among younger colleagues, the Disciplinary Domain needs to develop the forms of case preparation and collegial decision-making.

Multilingualism in a collegial organisation

A prerequisite for involving the entire collegium in the internal work of the Disciplinary Domain is to enable participation even for those who do not have Swedish as their mother tongue. Important skills and experience are at risk of being lost if a large part of the collegium is not given the opportunity to participate. Therefore, we should highlight and encourage the use of Swedish and English in parallel where necessary and possible.

Training in horizontal collegiality

Horizontal collegiality involves participation in the wider scientific community through for example expert assignments, peer review, serving as external reviewer for thesis defences and grading committee assignments. An active participation in the global academic community is absolutely necessary to strengthen and develop science and research going forward, but also to maintain collegial preparation processes in areas such as teacher appointments. Doctoral students and postdocs need training and support in order to participate early in collegial work at an international level.

Overview of the Disciplinary Domain’s organisation

One reason for the difficulty in recruiting for collegial assignments is that these assignments have developed and expanded in scope over the years in a way that may not be sustainable. At the same time, the Disciplinary Domain has grown at a record pace for many years, without the decision-making structures, organisation and administration necessarily developing at the same pace. The goal should be an organisation that enables collegial participation, while promoting a peaceful working environment and providing the conditions for continuous engagement in research and education. In the upcoming work on Goals and Strategies, the Disciplinary Domain of Medicine and Pharmacy therefore needs to examine what promotes and what hinders collegial participation, preparation, and decision-making.

Implementation this autumn

Several of the measures can be implemented immediately, while others are better suited for the upcoming work to update Medfarm’s Goals and Strategies. The collegium proposed packages of measures ‘Regrowth and incentives’, ‘Parallel language use’, ‘Information, communication, and education’, and ‘Sustainable and attractive leadership roles’ to be the most important to begin working on. Therefore, the Office for Medicine and Pharmacy will produce a film this fall that will explain the principles of our collegial system.

“This means that the development work will continue and I am happy about that, because in the end this is about the governance and future of academia. If the engagement decreases, the entire academic system is threatened. Together we can now strengthen a culture where collegiality means joy and the opportunity to work for a higher purpose,” concludes Pernilla Åsenlöf.

Ebba Burman