Study on the construction of a Chinese cardiovascular physician competency model

Abstract

Since the beginning of the 21st century, China's socioeconomic progress has altered lifestyles, accelerated urbanization, and population aging, significantly raising the risk of cardiovascular diseases (CVD). Currently, CVD stands as China's primary cause of death, necessitating the establishment of a high-quality cardiovascular workforce. While international research on competence models for cardiovascular physicians exists, the unique characteristics of Chinese CVD warrant a tailored approach. Despite numerous studies on competence models for clinical physicians in China, a model specific to cardiovascular physicians, aligned with the Chinese context, is lacking. This study aims to develop such a model to address CVD challenges and aid in recruitment, assessment, and training, aligning with the objectives of the "Healthy China 2030" plan. Utilizing a modified Delphi method, this study conducted two rounds of Delphi surveys involving 20 experts from renowned cardiovascular departments in Guangdong Province, China, based on literature reviews, behavioral event interviews, and expert consultations. Rigor and scientific validity were enhanced through measures such as experts' positive coefficient, experts' authority coefficient, and experts' coordination coefficient. Weightings for primary and secondary indicators were calculated using the Analytic Hierarchy Process and percentage weighting methods. The final cardiovascular physician competency model, tailored to the Chinese context, was determined. In both rounds of the Delphi surveys, the experts' positive coefficient exceeded 80%, the authority coefficient exceeded 0.7, and the p-values for the coordination coefficient were less than 0.01. These results indicate high accuracy and reliability, with strong expert consensus. The study developed a competency model comprising 8 primary indicators and 60 secondary indicators, with assigned weightings for each indicator. By utilizing an improved Delphi consensus process, the research team developed a competency model tailored to the Chinese context for cardiovascular physicians. This model encompasses various elements of clinical performance and professional behavior, and it is designed to provide effective guidance for the recruitment, evaluation, and residency training of cardiovascular physicians in China.

Keywords: Cardiovascular diseases (CVD); Cardiovascular physicians; Chinese context; Competency model; Delphi method.

Fig. 1

Research process diagram.

Fig. 2

Chinese cardiovascular physician competency model diagram. Codes represent the meanings of the items in Table 3.