by Gilbert. L. Fuld, M.D., FAAP
When I was a medical student many
years ago, our class was treated to a lec-
ture by a senior physician who stated
that professionalism requires doctors
to be identified in the media no more
than three times in their lives — when
they are born, when they marry and
when they die.
In the ’90s, an AAP president told
the Board of Directors he believed the
Academy should not be identified in
the media for taking any position that
might be controversial.
Clearly, those days are over.
The health and welfare of our pa-
tients, their families and the profes-
sion of pediatrics require our individ-
ual and collective involvement in the
public square. In the 21st century,
pediatricians using the media to in-
form and influence the public is pro-
fessionalism.
Smaller media outlets provide great opportunities for pediatricians
