Author ORCID Identifier
https://orcid.org/0009-0009-3055-5123
Abstract
Background: Physicians occupy a pivotal role in society as healers and communicators, with ethical leadership embedded in professional practice. In India, this role is evolving in response to changes in healthcare systems, increasing commercialization, and shifting societal expectations. Understanding how medical students perceive the physician’s role at the onset of medical education is vital for early professional identity development.
Objectives: To assess the motivations, perceptions, and values of first-year MBBS students regarding the societal roles, qualities, and responsibilities of physicians.
Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 430 first-year MBBS students at a tertiary medical college in Mysuru, Karnataka, using universal sampling. Data were collected through a pre-tested, semi-structured, self-administered Google questionnaire, assessing motivations for choosing medicine, perceived physician roles and qualities, societal expectations, and future workplace preferences. Descriptive analysis was performed using SPSS version 26.
Results: The mean age of participants was 18.47 ± 0.9 years, with females comprising 63.9%. Intrinsic and altruistic motivations such as passion for medicine, humanitarian values, social service, and professional respect were the most commonly reported reasons for choosing MBBS. Most students perceived physicians as lifelong learners and effective communicators, while leadership was less frequently recognized as a core professional role. Compassionate, patient-centred attributes, particularly empathy, caring, and good listening skills, were highly valued. A good physician was perceived as one who integrates disease prevention, cure, alleviation of pain and distress, and rehabilitation. Regarding future practice, over half of the students felt it was too early to decide, and only a small proportion expressed willingness to work in rural areas.
Conclusion: First-year MBBS students enter medical training with strong altruistic motivation, empathy, and a holistic understanding of physicians’ societal responsibilities. However, limited recognition of leadership roles and low inclination towards rural practice highlight the need for early professional orientation, leadership development, structured rural exposure, and career guidance within undergraduate medical education to foster socially accountable physicians.
Publication Date
2026
Publisher
JSS Academy of Higher Education & Research
Conflict of Interest
nil
Keywords
Physicians, MBBS students, Perceptions, Medical education
Word Count
2779
Recommended Citation
JOY J, S D, Shree A, D D.
THE ROLE OF PHYSICIANS IN SOCIETY: PERSPECTIVES FROM FIRST-YEAR MBBS ASPIRANTS.
Digital Journal of Clinical Medicine.
2026;
8(2):
-.
doi:
https://doi.org/10.55691/2582-3868.1325
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
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