Recommended Citation
Simpson D, Ouweneel K, Delfinado L, et al. #MedEd Professionalism & Trust Through Comics. November 2, 2026.
Abstract
Professionalism is a critical competency for all clinicians and is often included in medical student and residency competencies. Yet despite numerous articles and professional societies identifying broad elements of professionalism - it still remains a challenge. Often when someone exhibits what others perceive to be unprofessional behavior, when raised it can be met with comments like "that's just your opinion".
But numerous studies reveal that professional behavior does matter! To try and provide background information about the importance of professional behavior for physicians in a format that engages the audience, we created a comic - an education novelette - on professionalism. Comics are increasingly used in medical education with outcomes including enhanced empathy and communication while deconstructing medical hierarchy promoting richer discussions. This 20-page evidence-based comic is a quick read. It is intended to serve as the foundation for professionalism discussions. It was created by a team of clinician educators and education leaders based on multiple presentations on the topic - in collaboration with a graphic artist. We provide it in 2 forms. One to read as a PDF and another to download and print as a landscape booklet on 8x10 paper. We would appreciate any feedback and how this works for you!
Type
Book