ABIM Foundation Announces Top Articles in Medical Professionalism Fourth Annual Professionalism Article Prize Recognizes Outstanding Contributions to the Field

May 21, 2014 - Philadelphia, PA- The ABIM Foundation today recognized three articles in medical professionalism with the annual Professionalism Article Prize. A committee of physicians, a medical student and other leaders in health care reviewed more than 100 peer reviewed articles published in 2013 and selected the winners.

The journal articles receiving the award are:

"A Humble Task: Restoring Virtue in an Age of Conflicted Interests" by James M. DuBois, PhD, DSc; Elena M. Kraus, PhD; Anthony A. Mikulec, MD, MBA; Salvador Cruz-Flores, MD, MPH; and Erin Bakanas, MD, MA, published in Academic Medicine

"An Intervention Model That Promotes Accountability: Peer Messengers and Patient/Family Complaints" by James W. Pichert, PhD; Ilene N. Moore, MD, JD; Jan Karrass, MBA, PhD; Jeffrey S. Jay, JD; Margaret W. Westlake, MLS; Thomas F. Catron, PhD; Gerald B. Hickson, MD, published in the Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety

"Views of US Physicians About Controlling Health Care Costs" by Jon C. Tilburt, MD, MPH; Matthew K. Wynia, MD, MPH; Robert D. Sheeler, MD; Bjorg Thorsteinsdottir, MD; Katherine M. James, MPH; Jason S. Egginton, MPH; Mark Liebow, MD, MPH; Samia Hurst, MD; Marion Danis, MD, MPH; Susan Dorr Goold, MD, MHSA, MA, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association

The Professionalism Article Prize was created by the ABIM Foundation to recognize and encourage scholarship advancing medical professionalism as defined by Medical Professionalism in the New Millennium: A Physician Charter. Published in 2002 by the ABIM Foundation, ACP Foundation and European Federation of Internal Medicine, the Physician Charter articulates the professional commitments of physicians, including the primacy of patient welfare, patient autonomy and social justice. The Physician Charter has been endorsed by more than 130 organizations and cited in nearly 1,500 articles and books since its creation.

"The Professionalism Article Prize is helping raise awareness and a shared understanding of the challenges and opportunities physicians face in embodying professionalism ideals while practicing in increasingly challenging and complex environments," said Richard J. Baron, MD, President and CEO of the ABIM Foundation. "The winning articles highlight key areas of professionalism-including how physicians view their responsibility for controlling health care costs, the role of self-regulation in managing conflicts of interest and organizational constructs that help promote physician accountability. Each will ultimately help physicians improve the quality of care they deliver to patients."

Articles published in English-language, peer-reviewed journals between January 1, 2013 and December 31, 2013 were eligible for the prize. A selection committee judged them for clarity of writing, thoroughness, methodology and contributions to the field and society.

Members of the selection committee included:

Louise Arnold, PhD, Professor Emerita, Office of Medical Education, University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine
Barry Egener, MD, Medical Director, The Foundation for Medical Excellence
Rosemary Gibson, author, Medicare Meltdown
Hayley Goldbach, medical student, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania
Catherine Lucey, MD, Vice Dean of Education, University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine
Lorna Lynn, MD, Director, Practice Assessment, American Board of Internal Medicine
Walter McDonald, MD, FACP, Emeritus Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer, American College of Physicians-American Society of Internal Medicine
Daniel Wolfson, MHSA, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, ABIM Foundation

To help current and future physicians embed professionalism behaviors in their practice, the ABIM Foundation partnered with McGraw-Hill to publish a new textbook, titled Understanding Medical Professionalism. The textbook includes real-life case scenarios that illustrate the pitfalls and challenges faced by practitioners, actionable guidance on how to successfully address those challenges and helps develop the behavioral skills necessary to provide outstanding patient care.

Commentary about the Professionalism Article Prize, including discussion of the winning articles, will be featured in posts on The Medical Professionalism Blog. Links to the winners' abstracts, along with a comprehensive medical professionalism bibliography and information on previous winners, can be found on the Foundation's website at www.abimfoundation.org.

The mission of the ABIM Foundation is to advance medical professionalism to improve the health care system. We achieve this by collaborating with physicians and physician leaders, medical trainees, health care delivery systems, payers, policy makers, consumer organizations and patients to foster a shared understanding of professionalism and how they can adopt the tenets of professionalism in practice. To learn more about the ABIM Foundation, visit www.abimfoundation.org, connect with us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.