ABSTRACT
Shared values are a defining characteristic of professional identity. Within the healthcare professions, such values include compassion, respect and dignity for patients as well as a belief in equity of care and patient-centred practices. The implications that professional identity have for effective patient care have made professional identity a core component in medical education and continual professional development. Aspects of professional identity are complex, abstract and can be challenging to assess; however, the influence that professional identity has on an individual's practice can be observed and measured. In this chapter, we propose that values and attitudes associated with professional identity in the healthcare profession can be meaningfully studied through the analysis of communication and behavioural practices, observed directly from healthcare professionals’ interactions with patients during clinical consultations. This chapter will provide a narrative review of research that has employed direct observation of communication and behaviour to assess professional identity. It will also present a detailed case study of how direct observation methodologies, i.e. video observation, can be used to identify and quantify communications and behaviours associated with professional identity within a primary healthcare setting.
