How should integrity preservation and professional growth be balanced during trainees' professionalization?

Abstract

People can experience moral distress when they regard themselves as expected to pursue a course of action they believe to be morally wrong. However, beliefs that give rise to moral distress are sometimes underdeveloped. Experiences of moral distress are not uncommon for medical trainees, who are still in the process of forming their professional identities and whose identity-constituting beliefs might therefore be subject to ongoing revision. Thus, it is important for health professions training programs to incorporate case-based ethics education sessions into their structure to help identify and alleviate trainees' moral distress, provide ethics education, and create a “safe space” for trainees to talk openly about moral concerns related to clinical practice. Such opportunities are crucial to the professional growth of trainees.