Does a physician who observes a colleague acting unprofessionally have a duty to speak to that colleague about the unprofessional behavior?

Physicians have the same political rights as every U.S. citizen, but they must balance these freedoms with their ethical responsibilities to patients, not exploit respect for the profession to advocate for causes unrelated to medicine.

Physicians accept, and are held to, higher expectations and a more prominent social role than the average citizen.

State medical boards, which work to protect the public through careful issuing, suspension, and revocation of medical licenses, have been criticized for both over- and underdisciplining physicians.

A letter to the editor in response to the 2010 Bander Essay Contest winning entry about retail clinics.

Physicians may involve themselves in political advocacy as long as it does not damage patient relationships or erode access to health care. They may, in fact, have an obligation to do so.

Adoption of open-source software for the electronic health record will reduce disparities because it is openly available to all, encourage integration and interoperability between care sites because it is free of proprietary features, and promote innovation because users can contribute to its improvement.

To head off preventable adverse events related to medication, physicians can take three important steps. First, they should define terms when inquiring about what other medications patients use. Second, they should ask patients how they will use their new medications instead of asking whether they understand the instructions for use. Third, they should go the extra mile to overcome language barriers, even if that means temporarily interrupting workflow.

Following involvement in an error, professionals at all levels experience complex feelings that include guilt, self-doubt, embarrassment, disappointment, self-blame, a sense of inadequacy, and fear.

The AMA Code of Medical Ethics' opinions on patient safety.