Abstract
The social environment or “informal” curriculum of a medical school profoundly influences students’ values and professional identities. The Indiana University School of Medicine is seeking to foster a social environment that consistently embodies and reinforces the values of its formal competency-based curriculum. Using an appreciative narrative-based approach, we have been encouraging students, residents, and faculty to be more mindful of relationship dynamics throughout the school. As participants discover how much relational capacity already exists and how widespread is the desire for a more collaborative environment, their perceptions of the school seem to shift, evoking behavior change and hopeful expectations for the future.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Inui TS. A Flag in the Wind: Educating for Professionalism in Medicine. Washington, DC: Association of American Medical Colleges; 2003.
Swick HM, Szenas P, Danoff D, Whitcomb ME. Teaching professionalism in undergraduate medical education. JAMA. 1999;282:830–2.
Branch WT Jr. Supporting the moral development of medical students. J Gen Intern Med. 2000;15:514–6.
Smith SR, Dollase RH, Boss JA. Assessing students’ performances in a competency-based curriculum. Acad Med. 2003;78:97–107.
Hafferty FW, Franks R. The hidden curriculum, ethics teaching, and the structure of medical education. Acad Med. 1994;69:861–71.
Stacey RD. Complex Responsive Processes in Organizations. London: Routledge; 2001.
Watkins JM, Mohr BJ. Appreciative Inquiry: Change at the Speed of Imagination. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass; 2001.
Srivastva S, Cooperrider DL. Appreciative Management and Leadership: The Power of Positive Thought and Action in Organizations. Euclid, Ohio: Williams Custom Publishing; 1999.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Consortia
Corresponding authors
Additional information
Supported by a grant from the Fetzer Institute, Kalamazoo, MI.
Members of the Relationship-centered Care Initiative Discovery Team: Mary Alice Bell, MS, Stephen Bogdewic, PhD, Nancy Butler, MD, Ann Cottingham, MA, Margaret Gaffney, MD, Tolly Goldberg, MD, Gregory Gramelspacher, MD, Kurt Kroenke, MD, Gary Mitchell, MD, David L. Mossbarger, MBA, Bill Walsh, MD, Joann Warrick, MD, Kathleen Zoppi, PhD.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Suchman, A.L., Williamson, P.R., Litzelman, D.K. et al. Toward an informal curriculum that teaches professionalism. J GEN INTERN MED 19, 501–504 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1525-1497.2004.30157.x
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1525-1497.2004.30157.x