Ethics seminars: Beyond authorship requirements - Ethical considerations in writing letters of recommendation

Letters of recommendation may serve a number of vital functions related to the evaluation, selection, and promotion of candidates. The lure of academi c celebrity or the desire of an individual candidate for a flattering lette r must not threaten the veracity of the content. Letters of recommendation should be appropriately authored to meet the needs of the institution or in dividual requesting the letter, while keeping authenticity paramount. Lengt h and content should be complete but not overly verbose. Relevant elements suggested by standardized formats should typically be included, such as nat ure of contact with the applicant, commitment to emergency medicine, work, ethic, ability to develop a differential and treatment plan, personality, i nterpersonal interactions, and an overall comparative ranking. The seven ca rdinal elements of an exemplary letter of recommendation are that it should be: 1) authentic (based on adequate first-hand knowledge of the candidate' s skills); 2) honest (accurate; avoiding exaggeration or hyperbole); 3) exp licit (avoidance of veiled omissions); 4) balanced (taking care to incorpor ate both strengths and weaknesses); 5) confidential (avoiding unnecessary o r unanticipated disclosure); 6) of appropriate detail and Length (content r elevant to the institutional or individual requests); and 7) technically cl ear (avoidance of unnecessary abbreviations and jargon). The implied duty t o future students, colleagues, researchers, and patients who might come in contact with the applicant should motivate authors to write honest, explici t, appropriate, and complete letters.