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Challenges and Facilitators for Physicians and Medical Schools to Promote Social Accountability in Rural Communities: A Scoping Review and Thematic Analysis

Wasim, Aghna; Abud, Ali; Wang, Yihan; Tavakoli, Ehsan; Moreno-Gris, Athena; Joshi, Samar; Wang, Arthur; Neasadurai, Angela; Shaw, Nikki

Authors

Aghna Wasim

Ali Abud

Yihan Wang

Ehsan Tavakoli

Athena Moreno-Gris

Samar Joshi

Arthur Wang

Angela Neasadurai

Nikki Shaw



Abstract

Background: Social accountability aligns the health demands and priorities of the community and the commitment of medical schools. Existing literature has proposed contextually distinctive interventions encompassing geographical initiatives, institutions and communities, and systematic categorizations for the implementation of social accountability in a rural setting. Research concerning social accountability implementation strategies has been insufficient. This study provides an overview of the existing literature surrounding the social accountability practice of physicians and medical schools, in rural settings, through evidence of the barriers and facilitators inherent to these communities. Methods: This scoping review of 53 studies was conducted to determine challenges and facilitators associated with promoting social accountability in rural settings that are faced by physicians and medical schools. The review was consistent with the Arksey and O’Malley framework and included a search of Web of Science, MEDLINE, CINAHL, Scopus, and Embase to identify peer-reviewed articles on the topic from inception until April 1, 2024. Articles were screened against eligibility criteria, and important study characteristics and findings were extracted. A thematic analysis and narrative synthesis approach was used to analyze the data and report the results. Results: A total of 2698 abstracts were identified, 180 full-text articles were reviewed, and 53 articles were identified as eligible for inclusion in the review. Strategies used and problems inherent in promoting social accountability across physician practice and medical education are reported. Conclusions: This scoping review synthesizes existing evidence on the barriers and facilitators of social accountability practices in rural settings globally. The identified literature captures recurring themes of medical infrastructure inadequacy, community immersion curriculum design, targeted admission, geographical isolation, and institutional or peer support.

Citation

Wasim, A., Abud, A., Wang, Y., Tavakoli, E., Moreno-Gris, A., Joshi, S., Wang, A., Neasadurai, A., & Shaw, N. (2025). Challenges and Facilitators for Physicians and Medical Schools to Promote Social Accountability in Rural Communities: A Scoping Review and Thematic Analysis. Journal of Medical Education and Curricular Development, 12, https://doi.org/10.1177/23821205251348015

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date May 14, 2025
Online Publication Date Jun 26, 2025
Publication Date Jun 26, 2025
Deposit Date Jun 30, 2025
Publicly Available Date Jun 30, 2025
Journal Journal of Medical Education and Curricular Development
Electronic ISSN 2382-1205
Publisher Libertas Academica
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 12
DOI https://doi.org/10.1177/23821205251348015
Keywords social accountability, medical education, healthcare inequality, medical schools, rural medicine
Public URL https://keele-repository.worktribe.com/output/1283449
Publisher URL https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/23821205251348015

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Licence
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/

Publisher Licence URL
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/

Copyright Statement
This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits non-commercial use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access page (https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage).






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