Historical Perspectives on Medical Professionalism in the Caribbean

This paper provides a historical overview of the development of perspectives on medical professionalism and the medical profession in the Caribbean. Two historical periods, the colonial and the post-colonial, are explored for continuities and changes in perspectives. Recently, concern over the dilution of medicine's humanistic qualities has caused an increased interest in medical professionalism and ignited a wider movement to reform the profession. Medical education curricula are under renovation as issues of professionalism are now being openly raised among medical practitioners and students to ensure that the medical profession's service to society is un-compromised. In this context, some scholars have felt that an awareness of the history of the medical profession could play a significant role in humanizing medicine and fostering greater professionalism. Much of the emerging discussion on medical professionalism has occurred mainly in the developed countries, namely, Britain and the United States. The wider developing world, including the Caribbean, has fallen behind in this process. There is a lack of historical or contemporary works addressing issues of medical professionalism in the Caribbean. This paper will begin to fill this gap.