Geisel Academy of Educators & Scholars - Foundational Skills Series for Educational Research – Asking ‘How?’ and ‘Why?’: Qualitative Approaches

Monday, March 2, 2026, 4:00 PM - Friday, March 2, 2029, 5:15 PM

AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ (1.25 hours), ACPE Contact Hours (1.25 hours), ANCC Nursing Contact Hours (1.25 hours), ASWB Social Work Credit(s) (1.25 hours), CDR Dietetic CPEU(s) (1.25 hours), CME-Designated Participation Credit (1.25 hours)

This session explores qualitative research methods for health science & professions educators (HSPEs) seeking to answer "how" and "why" questions. Participants will learn the core characteristics that distinguish qualitative from quantitative approaches and explore four common qualitative methodologies: grounded theory, ethnography, realism, and critical research. The session emphasizes crafting strong qualitative research questions that align with methodological approaches. This session will help participants develop a qualitative research question for their own scholarly project, receiving guidance on question formulation and methodological fit.

Presenters

William H. Eidtson, Ed.D
Assistant Professor of Medical Education
Assistant Dean for Academic Advising, Medical Education
Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth

Meghan Longacre, PhD, MS
Assistant Professor of Health Policy and Clinical Practice
Health Policy and Clinical Practice
Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth

For more information about the Geisel Academy of Educators and Scholars, please visit our website: Geisel Academy of Educators and Scholars.

Please download the handouts HERE.

1. Describe the core characteristics of qualitative research approaches.
2. Explain what makes a “good” qualitative research question.
3. Develop a qualitative research question for their own research.

In support of improving patient care, Dartmouth Health is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team. 

American Medical Association (AMA)
Dartmouth Health designates this Enduring Material for a maximum of 1.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits^TM. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC)
Dartmouth Health designates this Enduring Material for a maximum of 1.25 ANCC contact hours. 

Accreditation Council of Pharmacy Education (ACPE)
Dartmouth Health designates this knowledge-based activity for a maximum of 1.25 hour. Credit will be provided to NABP CPE Monitor within 60 days after the activity completion.

UAN JA0000201-0000-26-025-H99-P | UAN JA0000201-0000-26-025-H99-T

Pharmacists/Pharmacy Technicians Account Setup
If you wish to apply for ACPE credit, you will need to enter your NABP ePID# and Date of Birth in your CE Profile by following these steps:

• Log in to Dartmouth Health's CE portal.

• From the My Account Menu select Profile.

• Enter your Date of Birth (Month and Day)

• In the Credentials section, select NABP ePID# from the drop down and enter your ID number

• Scroll down to the bottom of the screen and click Submit

Social Workers (ASWB)
As a Jointly Accredited Organization, Dartmouth Health is approved to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Organizations, not individual courses, are approved under this program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. Social workers completing this course receive 1.25 general continuing education credits.

Social Worker Account Setup
If you wish to apply for ASWB credit, you will need to enter your license number in your CE Profile by following these steps:

• Log in to Dartmouth Health's CE portal.

• From the My Account Menu, select Profile.

• Ensure your degree and profession are accurately reflected

• Enter the state license type, License #, and Expiration date

• Scroll down to the bottom of the screen and click Submit

Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR)
Completion of this RD/DTR profession-specific or IPCE activity awards CPEUs (1 IPCE credit = 1 CPEU).
If the activity is dietetics related but not targeted to RDs or DTRs, CPEUs may be claimed which are commensurate with participation in contact hours (1 hour/60 minutes = 1 CPEU).
RDs and DTRs are to select activity type 102 in their Activity Log.

All other learners may claim CME-designated participation credit. Consult your professional licensing board regarding the applicability and acceptance of CME-designated participation credit for programs certified for credit by organizations accredited by Joint Accreditation for Interprofessional Education.

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Bibliographic Material

• Stange KC, Zyzanski SJ. Integrating qualitative and quantitative research methods. Fam Med 1989;21(6):448-51.

• Moser A, Korstjens I. Series: Practical guidance to qualitative research. Part 1. Eur J Gen Pract 2017:1:271-273.

• Hanson JL, Balmer DF, Giardino AP. Qualitative research methods for medical educators. Acad Pediatr 2011:11:375-386.

• Denzin NK, Lincoln YS (Eds). Handbook of qualitative research. 2000. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

• Padgett DK. Qualitative and mixed methods in public health. 2012. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

• Streubert HJ, Carpenter DR. Qualitative research in nursing. 5th Ed. 2011. Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer.

• Sawatsky, A. P., Nordhues, H. C., Merry, S. P., Bashir, M. U., & Hafferty, F. W. (2018). Transformative learning and professional identity formation during international health electives: A qualitative study using grounded theory. Academic Medicine, 93(9), 1381–1390. https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0000000000002230.

• Canzan, F., Saiani, L., Mezzalira, E., Allegrini, E., Caliaro, A., & Ambrosi, E. (2022). Why do nursing students leave bachelor program? Findings from a qualitative descriptive study. BMC Nursing, 21(1), 71. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12912-022-00851-z

• Burm, S., Deagle, S., Watling, C. J., Wylie, L., & Alcock, D. (2023). Navigating the burden of proof and responsibility: A narrative inquiry into Indigenous medical learners' experiences. Medical Education, 57(6), 556–565. https://doi.org/10.1111/medu.15000

• Blalock, A. E., & Leal, D. R. (2023). Redressing injustices: How women students enact agency in undergraduate medical education. Advances in Health Sciences Education, 28(3), 741–758. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-022-10183-x.

• Craig SR, Scott R, Blackwood K. Orienting to medicine: Scripting professionalism, hierarchy, and social difference at the start of medical school. Cult Med Psychiatry 2018:42:654-683.

• Creswell JW, Clark VP. Designing and conducting mixed methods research. 2007. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

• Schifferdecker KA, Reed VA. Using mixed methods research in medical education: Basic guidelines for researchers. Med Educ 2009;43(7):637-44.

• Guba, E. G. 1981). Criteria for assessing the trustworthiness of naturalistic inquiries. Educational Communication and Technology Journal, 29, 75–91.

• Lincoln, Y. S., & Guba, E. G. (1985). Naturalistic inquiry. Sage Publications.

• Morse, J. M. (2015). Critical analysis of strategies for determining rigor in qualitative inquiry. Qualitative Health Research, 25, 1212–1222.

• Morse, J. M., Barrett, M., Mayan, M., Olson, K., & Spiers, J. (2002). Verification strategies for establishing reliability and validity in qualitative research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 1, 13–22.

• Cypress, B. S. (2017). Rigor or reliability and validity in qualitative research: Perspectives, strategies, reconceptualization, and recommendations. Dimensions of Critical Care Nursing, 36(4), 253–263.

• Tong A, Siansbury P, Craig J. Consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research (COREQ): A 32-item checklist for interviews and focus groups. Int J Qual Health Care 2007;19:349-357.

• O’Brian BC et al. Standards for reporting qualitative research: A synthesis of recommendations. Acad Med 2014;89:1245-1251.

Provider Contact Information
Provider contact information for questions regarding accreditation of the activity:

Center for Learning and Professional Development
ACE Office
Dartmouth Health
[email protected]

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Mitigation of Relevant Financial Relationships

Dartmouth Health adheres to the ACCME’s Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Education.  Any individuals in a position to control the content of a CE activity, including planners, faculty, authors, or others are required to disclose all financial relationships with ineligible companies^.  All relevant financial relationships have been mitigated prior to the commencement of the activity.

^Ineligible Company is any entity whose primary business purpose is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients.