Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Professionalism

  • Chapter
Intensive and Critical Care Medicine

Abstract

Medicine is more than the sum of our knowledge about disease. Medicine concerns the experiences, feelings, and interpretation of human beings in often-extraordinary moments of fear, pain, anxiety, and doubt. In this extremely vulnerable position, it is medical professionalism that underpins the trust the public has in doctors. Efforts to build professionalism must be based on a sharing of values over the long term. The career stage of learners must guide teaching efforts. Teachers must offer a clear cognitive base and discuss how learners interpret this in their actions and those of others. Role modeling is essential and empowers young physicians to participate in building the environment, expectations, and rewards which foster professionalism. A more appropriate reflection and several medical education initiatives have stressed the linkage between professionalism (profession, professional) and competence.

Medicine is “a calling, not a business” Sir William Osler, The Reserve Of Life. St. Mary’s Hospital Gazette, 1907

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 129.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 219.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 249.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Johnston S (2006) See one, do one, teach one: Developing professionalism across the generations. Clin Othopaedics Relat Res 449:186–192

    Google Scholar 

  2. Taylor G (2002) Clinical governance and the development of a new professionalism in medicine: educational implications. Educ Health 15(1):65–70

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Peters J, McManus IC, Hutchinson A (2001) Good medical practice. Comparing the views of doctors and the general population. Medical Educ 35(Suppl):52–59

    Google Scholar 

  4. Cruess RL, Cruess SR, Johnston S (1999) Renewing professionalism: an opportunity for medicine. Acad Med 74:878–884

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Krause WA (1996) Death of the guilds: profession, states and the advance of capitalism, 1930 to the present. Yale University Press, New Haven

    Google Scholar 

  6. Freidson E (1970) Professional dominance: the social structure of medical care. Aldine, Chicago

    Google Scholar 

  7. Greising D (2003) The rug pulled out from beneath our feet. Chicago Tribune 15 June Sect 2:1 (col 1)

    Google Scholar 

  8. Sullivan WM (2000) Medicine under threat: professionalism and professional identity. CMAJ 162(5):673–675

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Cruess SR, Cruess RL (2000) Professionalism: a contract between medicine and society. JAMC 162(5):673–675

    Google Scholar 

  10. Albanese M, Mejicano G, Gruppen L (2008) Perspective: competency-based medical education. A defense against the four horsemen of the medical apocalypse. Acad Med 83(12):1132–1139

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Working Party of the Royal College of Physicians (2005) Doctors in society. Medical professionalism in a changing world. Clin Med 5(6 Suppl. 1):S5–S40

    Google Scholar 

  12. Sackett DL (1997) Evidence-based medicine: how to practice and teach EBM. Churchill Livingstone, New York

    Google Scholar 

  13. Levi MM (1999) Evidence based medicine in critical care. Curr Opin Crit Care 5:326–331

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Pellegrino ED, Relman AS (1999) Professional medical association: ethical and practical guidelines. JAMA 282:984–986

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Kirk LM (2007) Professionalism in medicine: definition and consideration for teaching. Proc (Bayl Univ Med Cent) 20:13–16

    Google Scholar 

  16. CanMEDS (2000) Professional role document. Royal college of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, available at: http://rcpsc.medical.org/english/publications/roles_e.html

    Google Scholar 

  17. Surdyk PM, Lyinch DC, Leach DC (2003) Professionalism: identifying current themes. Curr Opin Anesthesiol 16:592–602

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Bucher R, Anselm S (1961) Professions in process. Am J Sociol 66:325–334

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Medical professionalism (2002) A Physician Charter. Ann Intern Med Project of the ABIM Foundation, ACP-ASIM Foundation, and European Federation of Internal Medicine 136:243–246

    Google Scholar 

  20. Reiser SJ, Banner RS (2003) The charter on medical professionalism and the limits of medical power. Ann Intern Med 138(10):844–846

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Epstein RM, Hundert EM (2002) Defining and assessing professional competence. JAMA 287:226–235

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  22. Lee AL, Jacobs G (1973) Workshop airs patient’s rights. Hospitals 47:39–43

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  23. Katz J (1984) The silent world of doctor and patient. Free Press, New York

    Google Scholar 

  24. Brann M, Mattson M (2004) Toward a typology of confidentiality breaches in health care communication: an ethic of care analysis of provider practices and patients perceptions. Health Commun 16(2):231–251

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  25. Davidoff F, Batalden PB, Stevens DP et al (2008) Publication guidelines for improvement studies in health care: evolution of the SQUIRE project. Ann Intern Med 149(9):670–676

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  26. Batalden PB, Davidoff F (2007) What is “quality improvement” and how can it transform health-care? Qual Saf Health Care (81):2–3

    Article  Google Scholar 

  27. Besso J, Bhagwanjee, Takezawa J et al (2006) A global view of education and training in critical care medicine. Crit Care Clin 22(3):439–446

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. Pizzi L, Goldfarb NI, Nash DB (2004) Crew resource management and its applications in medicine (http://ahcpr.gov/clinic/ptsafety/chap44.htm)

    Google Scholar 

  29. Cruess RL Cruess SR (2006) Teaching professionalism: general principles. Med Teach 28(3):205–208

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  30. Inui T (2003) A flag in the wind: educating for professionalism in medicine. Association of American Medical Colleges, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  31. Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGM), and American Board of Medical Specialists (2000) The Outcome Project. ACGME, Washington, DC, pp 1–21

    Google Scholar 

  32. Barret H, Bion JF, on behalf of the CoBaTRice Collaboration (2004) CoBaTRice survey of national training programmes in intensive care medicine. Intensive Care Med 30(Suppl)16:47

    Google Scholar 

  33. Barret H, Bion JF (2005) An international survey of training in adult intensive care medicine. Intensive Care Med 31(4)553–561

    Article  Google Scholar 

  34. The CoBaTRIce Collaboration (2007) The view of patients and relatives of what makes a good intensivist: a European survey. Intensive Care Med 33:1913–1920

    Article  Google Scholar 

  35. Rubulotta F, Gullo A, Iapichino G et al (2009) The Competency-Based training in Intensive Care Medicine in Europe (CoBaTrICE) Italian collaborative: national results from the Picker survey. Minerva Anesthesiol 75:117–124

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  36. Sonna Smith (2009) A mother asks President Obama to be honest about health care. Common Dreams.org, February 27

    Google Scholar 

  37. Parker M, Luke H, Zhang J et al (2008) The “pyramid of professionalism”: seven years of experience with an integrated program of teaching, developing, and assessing professionalism among medical students. Acad Med 83(8):733–741

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  38. Bryans-Brown CW (1999) The critical care trajectory. Am J Crit Care 8(3) 137–139

    Google Scholar 

  39. Eisnach J C (2009) Professionalism in anesthesiology. Anesthesiology 110:700–702

    Article  Google Scholar 

  40. Anonymous (2009) Medical education and professionalism. Lancet 373(9668):980

    Google Scholar 

  41. Jessop V, Johnson O (2009) Tomorrow’s doctors: a global perspective. Lancet 373(9668):1523

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department and School of Anesthesia and Intensive Care, Catania University-Hospital, Catania, Italy

    A. Gullo & P. Murabito

  2. Department of Critical Care Medicine, Hospital Centro Medico de Caracas, Caracas, Venezuela

    J. Besso

Authors
  1. A. Gullo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. P. Murabito
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. J. Besso
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department and School of Anesthesia and Intensive Care, Catania School of Medicine and University-Hospital, Catania, Italy

    Antonino Gullo

  2. Department of Anesthesiology, Keck Medical School, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Philip D. Lumb

  3. Department of Critical Care Medicine, Hospital Centro Medico de Caracas, Caracas, Venezuela

    José Besso

  4. World Federation of Critical Care Nurses C/-Nursing Administration, Gold Coast Health, Southport, Queensland, Australia

    Ged F. Williams

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2009 Springer-Verlag Italia

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Gullo, A., Murabito, P., Besso, J. (2009). Professionalism. In: Gullo, A., Lumb, P.D., Besso, J., Williams, G.F. (eds) Intensive and Critical Care Medicine. Springer, Milano. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-88-470-1436-7_3

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-88-470-1436-7_3

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Milano

  • Print ISBN: 978-88-470-1435-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-88-470-1436-7

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation