ECFMG Acculturation Program
What’s in a Name?
The first time you meet and introduce yourself to someone, whether this person is a patient or a colleague, is a critical step in establishing a relationship. The first words you choose as a speaker are often given great weight in a listener’s initial judgments of you, whether these judgments are accurate or not. Using respectful and appropriate language is the best way to set a positive tone for this new relationship.
What’s in a Name? is an interactive, self-paced tutorial on meeting and greeting patients and colleagues in U.S. hospitals and clinics. This resource provides examples of the language people typically use when meeting and greeting one another for the first time, and may be helpful for international physicians who are unfamiliar with common English usage or the social conventions that guide introductions in the United States.
In the United States, as in all parts of the world, there will be variation in the language people use and the conventions that apply to meeting and greeting one another. For this reason, the best learning tools are always careful listening and observation. In creating What’s in a Name?, we have attempted to present usage and terms that, while not necessarily universal, demonstrate commonly accepted and professional ways of introducing oneself and interacting with people for the first time.
The options offered as possible responses to the questions or scenarios are not meant to be “right” or “wrong.” To maximize learning, users may want to take a look at all of the responses, even if their first choice is acceptable; much can be learned by understanding why less acceptable responses are less acceptable.
At the end of the program, there will be no final score or pass/fail determination. The purpose of What’s in a Name? is solely to help users become more comfortable interacting with others and, hopefully, to have some fun in working through the program.
Begin the Tutorial!
