PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - John W Funder
TI  - Medicine as a profession
AID  - 10.7861/clinmedicine.10-3-246
DP  - 2010 Jun 01
TA  - Clinical Medicine
PG  - 246--247
VI  - 10
IP  - 3
4099  - http://www.rcpjournals.org/content/10/3/246.short
4100  - http://www.rcpjournals.org/content/10/3/246.full
SO  - Clin Med2010 Jun 01; 10
AB  - Over half a century ago, a Canadian judge defined a profession in a way that resonates still today, not only for lawyers and doctors, but for the current wide variety of professions and professionals. This article is a reflection on this definition. It briefly considers the historical context within which the knowledge base that characterises a profession evolved and what the various component parts of the judge's definition entail. A final consideration goes beyond the terms of the definition proposed – that of our ethical responsibility as professionals to stand up and be counted and, in the context of the disorder around us, to speak out.