Bright’s Award-winning Workshop Reframes Medical Professionalism
By encouraging educators to view professionalism concerns through the lens of executive function and strengths-based feedback, Asia Bright, PhD, earned the Medical Education Scholarship Award from the Southern Group on Educational Affairs(external link) (external link).
The award honors outstanding poster and oral abstract presentations at the Southern Group on Educational Affairs spring meeting. Bright was recognized for her presentation, “Reframing Professionalism: Executive Function and Strengths-Based Feedback in Medical Education.”
“Receiving the Medical Education Scholarship Award for an Early Career Scholar is both affirming and motivating,” said Bright, assistant professor and director of the Office of Professionalism at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston, as well as executive director of Student Affairs at UTHealth Houston. “It signals that the ideas and innovations I am pursuing are resonating with colleagues across the field of medical education and that others see the value in the questions I am asking and the approaches that I am taking.”
Bright’s workshop challenged traditional approaches to professionalism concerns in medical education by encouraging educators to look beyond the behavior itself and consider what may be contributing to it. Rather than viewing professionalism lapses solely as disciplinary issues, the session introduced a framework for recognizing how challenges with executive functioning can influence learner performance.
Participants explored how skills such as organization, planning, time management, self-awareness, and adaptability may shape behaviors commonly interpreted as professionalism concerns. The approach encouraged educators to move beyond identifying problems and toward understanding the factors that may be affecting a learner’s success.
Through interactive case discussions featuring both a medical student and a resident, attendees worked collaboratively to identify potential contributing factors and develop practical coaching strategies. The workshop also introduced a three-step, strengths-based approach designed to help learners build on existing strengths while addressing areas for growth.
By reframing professionalism concerns through a developmental lens, Bright’s workshop emphasized a more supportive, objective, and learner-centered approach to feedback and professional growth across medical education.
“As an early-career educator and scholar, this recognition provides encouragement that I am moving in the right directions while also reflecting the confidence and esteem of respected peers and senior leaders who recognize the potential impact of my work,” Bright said. “Most importantly, it reinforces my commitment to advancing educational scholarship that is innovative, meaningful, and capable of improving the learning environment for trainees and faculty alike.”