A framework for professionalism in surgery: what is important to medical students?

Background: The purposes of this study were to develop a comprehensive framework for professionalism in surgery and to determine which attributes are most valued by medical students.

Methods: A framework for professionalism in surgery, consisting of 11 attribute categories, was developed. All 3rd-year medical students (n = 168) participated in a focus group and completed a questionnaire regarding their perceptions about professionalism. Students' responses were transcribed verbatim, coded, and assigned attribute categories.

Results: Students rated respect as the most important attribute of professionalism (56%), followed by altruism (21%) and interpersonal skills (8%). Fifty-three percent of students witnessed unprofessional behavior among faculty members while on the surgical clerkship. Of these incidents, 74% were related to respect, 28% to practice improvement, and 1% to altruism.

Conclusions: Respect was rated as the single most important characteristic of professionalism and was the attribute with the most witnessed violations.