The seven core virtues in medical professionalism

Abstract

Medicine is a moral and social enterprise. As a profession, it poses many challenges to its practitioners. Society depends on the medical community to serve the welfare of the sick, and often physicians are given much discretionary latitude in their work. Because of this, professionals must have a firm ethical foundation to avoid exploiting others, and to always serve the best interest of patients. Virtue ethics has existed since time immemorial. However, it has taken second place to principle-based ethics for a while now, where the use of logical reasoning guides ethical codes and conduct. These alone are not sufficient for a medical professional. With the peculiar stressors they may face, there are seven key virtues that are invaluable in medical practice: integrity, discernment, compassion, trustworthiness, conscientiousness, humility, courage. These virtues enable practitioners to make moral and ethical decisions when the current guidelines are incomplete, or if there are no currently available guidelines to address the problems that they face. Ultimately, these virtues enable practitioners to carry out a fulfilling and meaningful career.