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Cup of Coffee Conversations to Promote Professionalism

Promoting Professionalism

This initiative, developed at the Center for Patient and Professional Advocacy at Vanderbilt University Medical Center is a supportive infrastructure for addressing unprofessional or disruptive behaviors. This program recruits students, faculty and staff as trained Peer Messengers for the Texas A&M College of Medicine Cup of Coffee program. These select individuals embody the Aggie Core Values of Respect, Excellence, Leadership, Loyalty, Integrity and Selfless Service.

Goal

Our goal is to promote reliable health care and medical education through programs that foster professionalism through risk prevention, quality improvement, positive interventions and accountability.

The role of the Peer Messenger

  • The Peer Messenger is the peer who delivers the message to the person who had the lapse in professionalism
  • Peer Messengers deliver initial "informal" and secondary awareness intervention conversations
  • Each conversation lasts 3-5 minutes

Four graduated interventions to address professionalism

  1. Informal conversations for single incidents
  2. Non punitive awareness interventions when data reveals patterns
  3. Leader-developed action plans if patterns persist
  4. Imposition of disciplinary process if the plan fails

How to get involved

If you would like to nominate a colleague or yourself as a Peer Messenger, please complete the form below: