From the Individual to the Ecosystem: An Institutional Framework for the Career Sustainability of Early-Career Health Professions Faculty.

The career sustainability of early-career faculty in the health professions is often framed as a matter of individual resilience, a perspective that obscures institutional determinants of ill-being and attrition. We argue that retention and thriving depend on an institutional ecosystem that integrates structured mentoring, psychopedagogical support and formal recognition of faculty work. Drawing on recent evidence on burnout, resilience and career development in academic medicine, we propose the Health Professions Faculty Career Sustainability Institutional Ecosystem (EISCD-Health) and the Faculty Institutional Resilience Index (IRID-Health). We describe causal mechanisms for each axis, formulate testable predictions and outline a phased implementation agenda guided by gender and racial equity, offering clinical teachers and institutional leaders concrete levers and metrics to make early-career faculty careers more sustainable and just.