presenting a conceptual model of institutional research office for the medical universities of iran: a case study

Background: the office of institutional research (ir) is an efficient part of universities and is responsible for guiding academic research. ir plays a pivotal role in improving the quality of higher education and universities through targeted research.objectives: the present study aimed to propose a conceptual model of ir for the medical universities of iran.methods: this qualitative case study was performed on experts and managers at kermanshah university of medical sciences, iran. 10 subjects were selected via purposive sampling, and data were collected via in-depth semi-structured interviews, text mining, and observation until reaching theoretical saturation. the validity of the research was confirmed based on lincoln and guba’s evaluative criteria. the retest and inter-coder reliability of the interview texts and documents were confirmed at 0.85%, and 0.81 and 0.79, respectively. data analysis was performed using thematic analysis.results: we developed a model consisting of four inclusive themes, including: information authority, spin doctor, policy analyst, and scholar and researcher. furthermore, the proposed model had 17 organizing and 71 basic themes.conclusions: our model with themes and organizing could be used by the medical universities of iran to guide the measures taken to establish an ir office in these institutions.