Becoming a Physician: A 40-year Retrospective on Medical Socialization

The medical training and socialization process can be stressful and at times even traumatic. Medical students must develop ways to nurture their vitality, refine their values, be true to theirselves, and develop their capacities as healers in the face of the difficult medical socialization processes. This article outlines the challenges of medical training and socialization, and then reviews well-established principles and practices for becoming a vital, skillful, and healing physician.