Table 1 Leading questions for the semi-structured interview with novice and expert anaesthetists. (translated from German)
From: How novice and expert anaesthetists understand expertise in anaesthesia: a qualitative study
Questions for the novice | Questions for the expert | Scope of the question |
|---|---|---|
What was your motivation to become an anesthesiologist? | What was your motivation to become an anaesthetist? | Open-ended question introducing the interviewee to the topic. |
What fascinates you most about this profession? | What fascinates you most about this profession? | Open-ended question introducing the interviewee to the topic. |
Which tasks are part of being an anesthesiologist? | Which tasks are part of being an anesthesiologist? | Scope and task requirements of an anesthesiologist. |
How did you experience your first months as novice anaesthetist? | What do you remember about your time as novice anaesthetist? | Personal account of being/having been a novice anaesthetist |
Imagine that we meet ten years from now. What do you think will have changed by then? | Meanwhile, you have become an expert anesthesiologist. What changed in these years? Which factors are responsible for this change? | Paraphrase of expertise, description of being expert |
What do you think will need to happen for this change to occur? | What has made you the person you have become? | Personal account of developing expertise. What can a person actively contribute to this development and what ‘just happens’? |
If a novice would ask you: “I would love to become such an expert anesthetist as you are; what should I do, read, and learn?” What would you answer that person? | Personal account of the professional development process. Recommendations on strategy to become an expert. | |
What will be your biggest challenges? How will you solve them? | Reflecting upon your personal journey of becoming an expert: What were your biggest challenges? How did you solve them? | Which problems are anticipated/were experienced in becoming an expert? |
Can you remember a recent critical event where you had the impression that there is still so much to learn and that you are still at the very beginning of your professional career? | Can you remember your first months as anesthesia trainee? How did that feel like to be a novice? What were the challenges? | Perception of novice of how it feels to be a novice. Description of problem solving at novice stage |
Tell me about that situation. How did that feel like? | ||
What role does medical textbook knowledge play and what role experience? | What role does medical textbook knowledge play and what role experience? | Concepts of explicit and tacit knowledge; interaction between these two knowledge representations |
What role do ‘standards’ play? Is it possible or sometimes necessary to deviate from standards in order to ensure safe patient care? If yes, how do you decide? | What role do ‘standards’ play? Is it possible or sometimes necessary to deviate from standards in order to ensure safe patient care? If yes, how do you decide? | Concepts of variability, adaptation and the expert’s role in defining when to follow standards and when to deviate. |
As a final question: how would you define “expertise in anesthesiology”? | As a final question: how would you define “expertise in anesthesiology”? | Assumption that after having been interviewed for 30–45 min on practical aspects of expertise, interviewees might be more able to give a theoretical definition. |