Medical professionalism is one of the core components of the practice of medicine and an evolving concept reflecting the changes in our health care system. In 2002, the ABIM Foundation defined medical professionalism in its Physician Charter, stating that professionalism “supports physicians' efforts to ensure that the healthcare systems and physicians working within them remain committed both to patient welfare and to the basic tenets of social justice.” (Ann Intern Med 2002;136:243-6) The Physician Charter enumerated three fundamental principles as well as 10 responsibilities by which all physicians should abide, and it soon was adopted by many professional societies, including ASA (Ann Intern Med 2003;138:839-41). Eighteen years after its publication, the Physician Charter remains as the standard for professional conduct in medicine.
One of the 10 responsibilities listed in the Charter is the “commitment to honesty with patients,” that “physicians must ensure that patients are completely...
