{"id":"1af4a106-01fa-41c6-adcd-93e5296c047b","slug":"sni-17-554","title":"A narrative review of international professionalism standards in neurosurgery","authors":["John Paul G Kolcun","Sepehr Sani","Stephan A. Munich","Vincent C. Traynelis","John E. O’Toole","Ricardo B. V. Fontes"],"abstract":"Background: This study seeks to characterize and compare the professionalism standards of neurosurgical societies from around the world and identify key elements common to ideas of neurosurgical professionalism internationally. Methods: This is a narrative review of neurosurgical organizations selected based on size of membership, and size or representative diversity of region served. Societies with publicly-available documents in English were preferred. Organizational documents, including governing documents and explicit professionalism/conduct standards, were reviewed. Identifiable professionalism standards were compared for scope, content, and enforceability, and common elements across societies were abstracted. Results: Fifteen societies were included, comprising one global society, five continental societies, and nine national societies. Ten organizations had some form of explicit professionalism standards, of which seven were dedicated, free-standing documents. Dedicated codes of conduct were more common in Western societies. Among these, seven common themes were identified: disruptive behavior, harassment, discrimination, business/ legal activity, scientific/academic integrity, substance abuse and impairment, and social media use. Conclusion: Professionalism is a critical aspect of modern neurosurgery, and has long-reaching effects on patient care and career success. In an era of unprecedented global connection, universal standards of professionalism are critical to the continued growth and success of our community.","thumbnailUrl":"https://sni-digital-videos.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/sni-17-554/figures/SNI-17-554-g001.jpg","publishDate":"2026-10-02T00:00:00.000Z","doi":"10.25259/SNI_759_2026","categories":["Socio-Economics, Politics, and Medicine","Review Article"],"fullTextUrl":"https://surgicalneurologyint.com/api/articles/1af4a106-01fa-41c6-adcd-93e5296c047b/pdf"}