title: Professionalism and evolving concepts of quality.
abstract: For much of the twentieth century, quality of care was defined specifically in terms of physician characteristics and behaviors. High-quality physicians were well trained, knowledgeable, skillful, and compassionate. More recently, quality of care has been defined in terms of systems of care. High-quality organizations develop and adopt practices to reduce adverse events and optimize outcomes. This essay discusses this transformation from physician-based to organization-based concepts of quality and the consequences for patient care and medical professionalism.
authors.affiliation: Section of Clinical Sciences, Division of Rheumatology, Immunology and Allergy, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA. jnknatz@partners.org
authors.forename: Jeffrey N
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Katz
authors.forename: Courtenay L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Kessler
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: O'Connell
authors.forename: Sharon A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Levine
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D010043:Outcome and Process Assessment, Health Care / Q000639:trends; D010819:Physician's Role; D011361:Professional Competence; D011787:Quality of Health Care; D014481:United States