Lana M Minshew

Dr. Minshew is an educational researcher, qualitative methodologist, and learning scientist who brings a unique interdisciplinary perspective to health professions education. Her professional foundation includes seven years as a K-12 science teacher, a Master's in Educational Psychology from the University of Houston, and a doctorate in the Learning Sciences from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  Dr. Minshew’s doctoral research focused on collaborative learning and scientific argumentation development with an emphasis on qualitative methods and design-based research. This foundation was enhanced through a postdoctoral research fellowship in the Center for Innovative Pharmacy Education and Research (CIPhER) at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. Prior to joining Duke, Dr. Minshew was an Assistant Professor in the Clinical Sciences Department (School of Pharmacy) and the Division of General Internal Medicine (School of Medicine) at the Medical College of Wisconsin.

Dr. Minshew's research agenda centers on three interconnected themes that collectively advance evidence-based health professions education: the application of educational theory to health professions contexts, design thinking methodologies for curricular innovation, and faculty development and professional flourishing. Her current research portfolio demonstrates this integrated approach through several major initiatives, including a longitudinal study examining physician virtue and professional flourishing that explores how training environments shape both competence and character, and parallel research with pharmacy faculty investigating educational and systemic factors contributing to faculty burnout and academic exodus. Through the Knowledge Informing Collaboration for Scholarship (KICS) research group, she leads systematic investigations of educational theory application in health professions education while coordinating best practices research in resident medical education. Her work represents a synthesis of educational theory, qualitative research expertise, and healthcare education practice that enables her to address persistent challenges in medical and pharmacy education while developing innovative solutions grounded in empirical evidence.