How to Foster Professional Values during Pathology Residency

The importance of professional and ethical behavior by physicians both in training and in practice cannot be overemphasized, particularly in pathology. Professionalism education begins in medical school, and professional attitudes and behaviors are further internalized during residency. Learning how to be a professional is a vital part of residency training. While hospital- or institution-based lecture style educational programs exist, they are often ineffective because the curriculum is not applicable to all specialties, although the basic concepts are the same. In this paper, the author suggests ways for institutions to develop professional attitude assessments and to survey residents’ responses to various unprofessional situations using case scenarios.