Peer Review

Becoming an Intentional Physician

Material Detail page

Reviewed:: Aug 21, 2026 by Health Sciences

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Ratings

Overall Rating:

Content Quality:

Effectiveness:

Ease of Use:

Overview:

Becoming an Intentional Physician provides a roadmap for medical professionals to cultivate a fulfilling career rooted in empathy, resiliency, and ethical practice. Through personal stories and practical insights, the book guides readers in developing a strong professional identity and embracing the lifelong journey of self-improvement.

Type of Material:

Open (Access) Textbook

Recommended Uses:

Homework readings
Discussion about the concepts in class
Self-paced individual reading
A mentorship resource for faculty advising students on career identity and specialty selection.
An orientation text for incoming medical students or residents to frame their professional development journey.

Technical Requirements:

Internet access
Web browser
The book is available in PDF format and as a web-based resource. PDF reader (such as Adobe Acrobat Reader, a browser-based PDF viewer, or any modern web browser) is required.

Identify Major Learning Goals:

After active engagement with the material, the learner will:

Describe the impact of storytelling (narrative pedagogy) to promote a holistic approach to medical practice.

Cultivate a fulfilling medical practice through examination of commitment, empathy, identification, perspective, intention, mentorship, curiosity, socialization, adaptability, wisdom, ethics, leadership, innovation and altruism.
Reflect on the meaning of medical practice experiences to attain self-improvement.
Apply principles of empathy, resilience, and intentionality to real clinical and interpersonal situations.

Target Student Population:

College Upper Division, Graduate School, Professional
Medical students and physicians

Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills:

Computer skills to access and navigate the textbook.
Medical knowledge preferred.

Content Quality

Rating:

Strengths:

Each chapter models a high level of reflective analysis for the reader.
Meaning-making is highly evident and models emotional intelligence and the humanity of being a physician. These are valuable chapters that address real-world practice as a physician.
The content is of high quality.
Key concepts are clearly identified.
Scholarly citations and references are included.
The format of reflective analysis writing and key concepts are appropriate.
The personal stories are vivid, authentic, and pedagogically effective. The content is non-promotional.

Concerns:

Although the reflective analysis writing in the textbook is highly effective, perhaps some questions or short exercises (e.g., case studies with questions) might further enhance it. Additional strategies to promote reflective analysis among readers could reach more users and help them develop reflective analysis skills.

Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Tool

Rating:

Strengths:

The learning outcomes are listed for each chapter in the Key Concepts format. The adaptation of learning outcomes to key concepts is appropriate for the textbook as it delves into self-awareness, reflection, empathy, social skills, motivation, and self-regulation.
The reflective analysis promotes conceptual understanding.
The author shares how narrative pedagogy is used to start class lectures (Chapter 5: Intention).
Suggested reading are well integrated throughout.
Its open-access format removes cost as a barrier, maximizing reach across diverse learner populations.

Concerns:

The CC BY-NC-ND license, while appropriate for an open textbook, prevents adaptation. Instructors who wish to customize content for specific institutional or cultural contexts will be unable to do so.The book does not include built-in assessment tools, discussion questions, or learning activities, which may limit its plug-and-play usability for instructors who need a more complete course resource.
While key concepts tie into ways in which to enhance ones growth, effectiveness is not well defined for the reader's reinforcement or measurement.

Ease of Use for Both Students and Faculty

Rating:

Strengths:

Uses SmartLinks or ordinary text for links within the chapter text.
Uses captions for images.
Describes images in detail in the text.
Sequential headings are set up for screen readers.
Each chapter follows the same navigational format.
The book is well-structured, with a clear table of contents, numbered chapters, and consistent formatting throughout.
Chapter headings and sub-headings are logically organized.
The open-access format means the resource is freely downloadable without registration or login requirements.

Concerns:

Reference links are not in SmarkLink or ordinary link format.
Some images do not include Alt Text. For example, Chapter 2 should include a brief description of the image for users who use a screen reader. However, note that the paragraph after the image does describe the concepts from the image in detail. The details in the text allow the brief alt text for the figure to inform readers using screen readers what the image is. Recommend adding alt text for all images. The images do include captions.
Some chapters include a lot of italic text. Italic text is challenging for some users, and using callout boxes could enhance the textbook accessibility.
Robust in learning is missing in the presentation of valuable concept, e.g., reflective questions, matching definitiions, etc.

Other Issues and Comments:

Becoming an Intentional Physician is an outstanding textbook that deeply addresses the human side of medical practice. The textbook is an excellent read that is highly recommended--a real gem!
The reflective analysis is an exceptional teaching/learning strategy for promoting morals, values, and ethics in medical practice.

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