OBJECTIVE: To identify the principal issues hindering primary care research conducted in French and propose practical steps to strengthen its visibility, recognition, and development. DESIGN: Participatory qualitative research. SETTING: Forum on research conducted in French held at an international scientific conference on primary care (2024 Annual Meeting of the North American Primary Care Research Group). PARTICIPANTS: Thirty-nine individuals from France, New Brunswick, Ontario, Quebec, and Switzerland attending the forum. METHODS: Drawing on the World Café method, 6 groups of 5 to 8 participants addressed 3 discussion topics: skills development for trainees and new researchers; knowledge mobilization; and international collaborative projects. Note-takers' notebooks, plenary notes, and the content of flip charts were thematically and continuously reviewed with NVivo, version 1.7.2. MAIN FINDINGS: Participants spoke about issues affecting research conducted in French in an environment where science is dominated by English-language studies, including higher impact factors for publications in English and biases in funding application evaluations. Courses of action identified for the international promotion of French-language primary care research emphasized the advancement of multilingualism in science; the relational dimension and networking; training the next generation and career development; various aspects of scientific communication; and adapting funding norms to the needs of Francophone researchers. CONCLUSION: Ongoing discussions, initiatives, and analyses aimed at promoting international primary care research conducted in French, including the perspective of patient partners, should be pursued and expanded.
Hudon et al. (Fri,) studied this question.