Abstract
Professionalism is important in all service-providing professions. Professional bodies have extensive rules and regulations creating the foundations of the definition of professionalism, its meaning and these rules have to be followed. In view of this, healthcare students are given intensive training. A prospective study conducted in a District General Hospital, to establish if professionalism was clearly defined. A questionnaire with open questions was given to 75 students from different disciplines including medical, nursing and chiropractic students (25 individuals from each group). The participants were at the end of their studies. The General Medical Council (GMC) criteria for professionalism were used. They were discussed as part of their induction to the orthopaedic department and the questionnaire was given to them at the end of their placement. Their answers were grouped, categorised and the findings were then analysed. All groups demonstrated a good understanding of the definition and factors that influence professionalism. Student nurses performed overall better than the other two groups. Medical and chiropractic students scored lower on communication, working with colleagues and audit/research. All three groups scored low in the categories of problem dealing and health. Reflection and mentoring were two of the subjects that they considered as important to help them improve their cognition to become a professional subject. The inclusion of the professionalism as subject to education seems that helps the understanding of the term but contact with the clinical environment and proper mentoring by senior clinicians enhances to the understanding in some of the criteria. GMC criteria can be used for the assessment of cognition of professionalism but with the addition of reflection in the list. Key words: Professionalism, healthcare, education.
Highlights
Many educators and professional bodies have been studying the behaviour and attitude of their students or their members extensively in the past towards their customers and their other colleagues
The purpose of this study is to find out how different groups of students from different disciplines, different backgrounds, training, experiences, institutions and regulatory bodies, who were given further information on the General Medical Council (GMC) criteria and regulations at their induction course to the department, define professionalism and find if further education and training would be necessary, so individuals to become aware of the profession’s and mainly the community’s needs
It was found that student nurses had a better overall understanding of professionalism scoring more points than the other two student groups
Summary
Many educators and professional bodies have been studying the behaviour and attitude of their students or their members extensively in the past towards their customers and their other colleagues. The most professions regulated are those which have as direct objective the human needs and they are those with the subject of License 4.0 International License Zafiropoulos. Doctors’ regulatory body, in their guidance, emphasises that all individuals need to be very attentive towards their behaviour to their patients and the members of patient’s families, as well as other health professionals and colleagues. Professionalism is one of the fundamental criteria of every doctor’s appraisal and revalidation (American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM), 2001; Irvine, 2005; General Medical Council (GMC), 2009; Scottish Government, 2012; Health Care and Professions Council (HCPC), 2014)
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