A Reconsidering of What it Means to be Professional

Professionalism is a tricky topic for me. When I first think of the word, I picture a stuffy, old-school doctor’s office with a very formal patient interaction and this paternalistic view of care in the relationship. I have this image in my mind of a physician in an immaculate white coat, standing with a notepad or at a computer and running through potential diagnoses with a patient who remains firmly in the traditional mold of a patient. That view of professionalism in medicine has come to evolve and expand as I grew in my undergraduate career and in medical school here. I’ve seen professionalism manifest as compassion, as a shoulder to cry on, as a sense of social justice, and in a hundred other ways that I wouldn’t have expected before arriving here. The idea of the consummate professional – acting to your highest ability in all facets of life – is an incredibly important one in medicine, and I’ve seen this play out especially in LP this year. My LP mentor has this ability to take on a vast array of different roles depending on her patient, and always adapts to the situation and remains composed and patient-centered. I see a lot of newly diagnosed diabetic patients alongside lifelong patients who are completely noncompliant, and her ability to shift from emotional rock to stern and non-compromising caregiver from patient to patient is incredible.

I think patient care is intricately tied to the professionalism of the care provider. Without a sense of trust and shared respect between the two parties, no relationship can be established to eventually lead to a plan of care. The paternal model of medicine, for so long what I viewed as “professionalism” in my mind, is the opposite of that. Instead, it’s about meeting your patients where they are and trying to adapt your style of care to better suit that specific interaction. In LP, I’ve been working really hard to get a read on each of the patients I see as I’m beginning the encounter. Is this someone I can crack a joke with? Are they nervous because I’m wearing a white coat and appear authoritative? Am I hiding behind the computer too much? Is my empathy and care coming across in my body language? As a new member of the medical community, all of this requires conscious effort, and it is encouraging to me to see my LP mentor and other practicing physicians exert this professional atmosphere so naturally. It’s like riding a bike – learning the little tips and cues over time in how to create a professional environment until eventually one day you go through a patient encounter and everything falls into place naturally. I try to strive for that in all my patient and peer encounters and I can appreciate how the concept of professionalism is encompassing of a vast variety of various actions and intentions.

I think my strongest professionalism traits are respect, altruism, and prudence. I was raised in a household that prioritized respect, both to others and to oneself, and I carry that with me today. I have a great deal of respect for my peers, the physicians and mentors who give their time so that I can have a great education, and the patients who I see who are trying to better their health. I also have respect for myself and how I operate on a day-to-day basis, and I think that helps me be a professional in every setting I am in. I am also a prudent person, and feel that I have an acutely developed sense of when to act, when to say something… and when to hold back. I feel a deep sense of altruism, and oftentimes chalk up this desire to do things for others as a sort of cosmic karma. I know that this will pay dividends in the medical profession, but I also know that I have to get better at balancing my altruism and my prudence with honesty, which I think is one of my professional weaknesses. Sometimes I want to say something or do something that will be an act of honesty, like telling a patient that their noncompliance is severely damaging their health journey, but my sense of prudence, and to a degree altruism, oftentimes prevents that. I find myself holding back or avoiding conflict because I prefer making someone feel better about themselves rather than trying to get them to better themselves as an individual or within their health story. I need to work on paying more attention to my honesty impulse and finding a better balance between that and prudence and altruism.