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PROFESSIONAL IDENTITY FORMATION AND COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE. Stony Brook, 2018. Richard L. Cruess Sylvia R. Cruess & colleagues McGill University Faculty of Medicine. No Conflicts of Interest To Report. The central issue in learning is becoming a practitioner,
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PROFESSIONAL IDENTITY FORMATIONAND COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE Stony Brook, 2018 Richard L. CruessSylvia R. Cruess & colleagues McGill University Faculty of Medicine
No Conflicts of Interest To Report
The central issue in learning is becoming a practitioner, not learning about practice. Brown and Duguid, 1991
OBJECTIVES OF THE SESSION By the end of this session, participants will be able to: • Describe the relationship of professional identity formation to professionalism within a community of practice • Identify factors that can positively or negatively affect identity formation • Apply this knowledge to better understand their own identities and educational practices
THE DUAL GOALS OF MEDICAL EDUCATIONNOT A NEW CONCEPT It is the function of undergraduate and postgraduate medical education to “transmit the culture of medicine and… to shape the novice into an effective practitioner of medicine, to give him the best available knowledge and skills, and to provide (him) with a professional identity so that he comes to think, act, and feel like a physician” Merton, 1957
HOW DID WE GET HERE?THE HISTORY OF THE “PROFESSIONALISM MOVEMENT” • Arose in the 1980s and ‘90s because of perceived threats to medicine’s professionalism • The ABIM “Project Professionalism” was seminal THE CHARTER • Led to an examination of how medicine’s values were transmitted from one generation to another • These values are embodied in the word “professionalism” • Professionalism had not been taught explicitly, having been transmitted by respected role models • It was agreed that depending upon role models alone was no longer effective
THE RESULT • A consensus that professionalism should be taught explicitly • The development of longitudinal curricula throughout the continuum of medical education that included methods of instruction and assessment • This required a cognitive base • Definitions of professionalism and its values and characteristics • An understanding of medicine’s relation to society (the social contract) and of public expectations of medicine
TeachingProfessionalism Year 1Year 4 Level of Sophistication Add Social Contract Undergraduate Postgraduate Practice Imparting the Cognitive Base Capacity to Incorporate Values Promoting Self-Reflection
THE RESULT (CONT’D) • An assumption that understanding professionalism would lead students to behave professionally • An emphasis on promoting and assessing professional behaviors – on “doing” • Of fundamental importance: teaching and assessing professionalism became a requirement for accreditation at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels-LCME, ACGME, ABMS, RCPSC(C), etc
BUTthere was always the existential question: Does medical practice require “a professional presence that is best grounded in what one is rather than what one does?” Hafferty, 2009
RELEVANT BACKGROUND The Carnegie Foundation Report: professional identity formation should be a foundational element of medical education (Irby, Cooke & O’Brien, 2010) An extensive literature on professional identity formation in medicine emerged- mostly in UGME It was proposed that supporting professional identity formation in learners become the educational objective Conceptually supporting professional identity formation builds on what we have learned from teaching professionalism – “the norms”
THE NEW ASSUMPTION • Professional identity formation throughout medical education and practice takes place through the process of socialization within a community of practice • This process can be made more effective and reliable by: • Being specific about the professional identity to be created • Understanding the nature of identity formation • Understanding socialization and communities of practice to create a curriculum and educational environment that facilitates the transition to the desired identity
DEFINITIONS: PROFESSION An occupation whose core element is work based upon the mastery of a complex body of knowledge and skills. It is a vocation in which knowledge of some department of science or learning or the practice of an art founded upon it is used in the service of others. Its members are governed by codes of ethics and profess a commitment to competence, integrity and morality, altruism, and to the promotion of the public good within their domain. These commitments form the basis of a social contract between a profession and society, which in return grants the profession a monopoly over the use of its knowledge base, the right to considerable autonomy in practice and the privilege of self-regulation. Professions and their members are accountable to those served, to their colleagues, and to society.” Derived from the Oxford English Dictionary and the literature on professionalism Cruess, Johnston, Cruess, 2004
DEFINITIONS: PROFESSIONAL IDENTITY DIFFERENT FROM PROFESSIONALISM • Professionalism:“a set of values, behaviors and relationships that underpins the trust the public has in doctors”(Royal College of Physicians of London, 2005) • Professional identity: not just how others perceive you, but how you perceive yourself
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL IDENTITY A representation of self, achieved in stages over time during which the characteristics, values, and norms of the medical profession are internalized, resulting in an individual thinking, acting and feeling like a physician. Cruess, Cruess, Boudreau, Snell & Steinert, 2014
IDENTITIES Professional identity formation is superimposed on the normal process of identity formation The process starts at birth & continues throughout life, stabilizing in early adult life Professional identities are superimposed on an individual’s personal identities An individual can have several personal & professional identities Their expression is context dependent
SMALL GROUP DISCUSSION I WHO ARE YOU? WHAT ARE YOUR PERSONAL & PROFESSIONAL IDENTITIES? WHAT FACTORS INFLUENCED THE DEVELOPMENT OF YOUR PROFESSIONAL IDENTITIES
THROUGH THE PROCESS OF SOCIALIZATION “The process by which a person learns to function within a particular society or group by internalizing its values and norms.” (OED) “Involves training for self-image and identity… melding knowledge and skills with an altered sense of self.” (Hafferty, 2009)
EXISTING PERSONAL IDENTITIES “Who you are” GENES Sex / Race Personal Characteristics EXPERIENCE Religion / Culture Class Education Sexual Orientation Other PERSONAL & PROFESSIONAL IDENTITIES “Who you become” Practice Resident Student SOCIALIZATION NEGOTIATION of VALUES & NORMS Acceptance Compromise Rejection GENERATIONALDIFFERENCES EXPRESSED Cruess et al., 2015
WHAT ARE THE NORMS?WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A PROFESSIONAL IS DETERMINED BY SOCIAL NEGOTIATIONS BETWEEN MEDICINE AND SOCIETY
PHYSICIAN Healer Professional ATTRIBUTES Competence Commitment Confidentiality Altruism Trustworthy Integrity / Honesty codes of ethics Morality / Ethical Behavior Responsibility to profession Caring/ compassion Empathy Insight Openness Respect for the healing function Respect patient dignity/autonomy Advocate for Patient Presence/Accompany Autonomy Self-regulation associations institutions Responsibility to society Team work Professional Healer Based on the literature
WHERE DOES SOCIALIZATION TAKE PLACE?IN SOCIAL GROUPS CALLED COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE Lave & Wenger 1991
EXISTING PERSONAL IDENTITIES “Who you are” GENES Sex / Race Personal Characteristics EXPERIENCE Religion / Culture Class Education Sexual Orientation Other PERSONAL & PROFESSIONAL IDENTITIES “Who you become” Practice Resident Student SOCIALIZATION NEGOTIATION of VALUES & NORMS Acceptance Compromise Rejection GENERATIONALDIFFERENCES EXPRESSED COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE Full Participation Legitimate Peripheral Participation Social Interaction Cruess et al., 2015
COMMUNITY OF PRACTICEA Social Learning Theory “A persistent sustaining social network of individuals who share and develop an overlapping knowledge base, set of beliefs, values, history and experiences focused on a common practice” Barab et al, 2002
MEDICINE AS A COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE • Medicine: a macro-community of practice Medical specialties: meso-communities Departments etc: micro-communities “A Landscape of Practices” • Physicians legitimately belong to multiple communities • Students and residents voluntarily wish to join medicine’s community of practice • In joining they acquire the identity of their chosen specialty, accepting and internalizing the values & norms established by the community
MEDICINE AS A COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE • The values & norms of medicine’s community of practice are delineated by the meaning of the word “professionalism” • The values and norms (professionalism) vary between cultures and between generations • THE VALUES AND NORMS OF THE COMMUNITY MUST BE MADE EXLICIT definitions, desirable attributes, behaviors • SOME ARE NON-NEGOCIABLE
“The greatest influence on professional identity formation takes place during residency” Ludmerer, 2015
SMALL GROUP DISCUSSION II • Is Stony Brook a community of practice? • If so, what makes it so?
Social Media Formal teaching & assessment Role models &mentors Learning environment Self-assessment Health care system Conscious reflection Unconscious acquisition New personal & professionalidentities Existingpersonalidentities Socialization Conscious reflection Unconscious acquisition Symbols& rituals Family & friends Clinical/non-clinicalexperiences Attitude of / Treatment by patients, peers, health care professionals,public Isolationfrom peers . .. Cruess et al., 2015
LEARNER ROLES AND POTENTIAL RESPONSES Learning the language Learning to play the role“Pretend until you become” Learning the hierarchy & power relationships Learning to live with ambiguity New personal & professional identities Existing personal identities Socialization Satisfaction Joy Anxiety Fear Frustration Stress Detached concernLoss of innocenceCynicismHumor or silence Increased competence Cruess et al., 2015
CRITICISM OF A COMMUNITES OF PRACTICE AS A THEORY • Bourdieu: Social structures tend to reproduce themselves, perpetuating existing hierarchies, power structures, and inequities- “self-deluding and self-reinforcing social behavior can take place within communities of practice” • Solution: identify and address the issues socioeconomic, gender, race, hierarchy & power, etc.
SMALL GROUP DISCUSSION IIIHow can you alter your program to specifically support professional identity formation in your residents?DISCUSS WITH YOUR NEIGHBORS
General Principles for Supporting Professional Identity Formation • Establish professional identity formation as an educational objective • Build upon what is already in place (teaching professionalism) • Provide institutional support • Establish and teach the cognitive base The norms (professionalism) The nature of identity formation (PIF) and socialization Communities of practice (COP)
Supporting Professional Identity Formation Year 1Year 4 Level of Sophistication Add Social Contract Undergraduate Postgraduate Practice Imparting the Cognitive Base Healer & Professional Socialization PIF & COP Capacity to Develop Professional Identity Experiences Reflection
General Principles for Supporting Professional Identity Formation • Engage students in their own identity formation, establishing membership in the community as an explicit aspirational goal • Stress that students MUST retain their own personal identities in spite of possible “identity dissonance” • Ensure that the community of practice is welcoming and supportive of its future members role models/mentors institutional factors emphasis on continuity, social events, rituals
General Principles for Supporting Professional Identity Formation • Address major learning environment factors that affect professional identity formation (the diagrams) • Be intentional: provide regular time and opportunities for guided reflection on professionalism, PIF, & COP • Provide faculty development to ensure that faculty understand the concept of PIF, socialization, & COP • Address & exploit times of transition • Establish programs to assess progress towards the acquisition of a professional identity Assess professional behaviors- “how others see you” Stress guided self-assessment- “how you see yourself”
ENGAGE STUDENTS IN GUIDED REFLECTION & SELF-ASSESSMENT Lay-person Physician Where are you on your journey?
THE ASPRATIONAL GOAL:A shift in emphasis from faculty teaching professionalism to one in which learners are actively engaged in developing their own professional identity with support from peers and faculty
CLOSING THOUGHTS THE ROLE OF REGULATORY BODIES “by breaking medical education into small, discrete, measurable tasks, the graduate medical education community might have overemphasized the question of assessment and overlooked the formation of professional identity. Stated another way, the competencies focused on doing the work of a physician, not on the broader, integrative, holistic goal of being a physician.” Ludmerer. “Let Me Heal”. p.306
A PROFESSIONAL IDENTITY ENCOMPASSES ALL COMPETENCIESPROFESSIONAL IDENTITY AS A CONCEPT HAS THE CAPACITY TO INTEGRATE THE VARIOUS COMPETENCIES INTO A FUNCTIONAL AND MEANINGFULL WHOLE
Medical Expert Professional Identity
“Expertise is not simply a property that passes from teacher to learner, but a dynamic commodity that resides within communities of practice; learning, according to the theory, is a process of absorbing and being absorbed into the culture of such a community“ Dornan et al., 2002
THANK YOU! CENTRE FOR MEDICAL EDUCATION richard.cruess@mcgill.ca sylvia.cruess@mcgill.ca
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