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A new position paper in the Annals of Internal Medicine this month examines the impact on professional and ethical perceptions when the word “provider” is used to describe physicians. The American College of Physicians’ (ACP) Ethics, Professionalism and Human Rights Committee, which developed the paper, says that physicians should always be identified as “physicians,” and overall, more specific terminology should replace the word “provider.” Likewise, nonphysicians who deliver care should be called “healthcare professionals” or “clinicians,” ACP members say. The committee raises 4 major points within this hot-button issue. First, the term “provider” blurs the line among institutions, insurers, and clinicians, blending them all together in a way that patients might not understand. Second, it reframes the patient–physician relationship as transactional rather than relational, as if the physician is merely in the business of commercial service delivery rather than delivering ethical clinical care in the patient’s best interest. Third, the language reduces the professional role of physicians who serve as trusted confidants, counselors, and advocates in their communities. Fourth, calling physicians “providers” can change their own perception and professional identity, potentially changing physician behavior. ACP’s bottom line recommendation on the matter is summed up simply: “The words ‘physician’ and ‘provider’ are not interchangeable.”
We’re all humans here: The ACP paper also discusses the origins of several words used in the healthcare space, noting how language has evolved in context. Even more so, in this era of emerging AI tools that have human-like language structures, the distinction of human-to-human relationships and the alliance between patients and their trusted (human) medical professionals are more important than ever.