The hidden professionalism curriculum: Teach it, see it, do it and repeat!

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Professionalism Studies

Background:

• Professionalism is a key, yet complex, aspect of medical education.
• Historically learned informally, professionalism is now a formal curriculum component with evolving teaching methods.
• Uncertainty exists regarding optimal pedagogies for teaching medical professionalism.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore medical students' exposure to professionalism topics.
• To identify factors enabling students to recognize and manage professional issues.
• To inform faculty development for enhanced professionalism teaching.

Main Methods:

• Convenience sampling of medical students from clinical attachments.
• Semi-structured interviews using fictional vignettes based on regulatory guidance.
• Analysis of interview transcripts and field notes.

Main Results:

• Didactic teaching alone facilitates topic recognition but not confident management.
• Experiential learning alone results in inconsistent recognition and reliance on role models.
• A combination of didactic and experiential learning is crucial for reliable recognition and management.

Conclusions:

• Formal integration of professionalism into undergraduate medical education is essential.
• Didactic teaching should scaffold experiential learning for effective professionalism development.
• Inadequate training hinders students' ability to manage professional issues in practice.