Medicine Has Its Own Gens

 We live in a world obsessed with generations. Gen Z has its own language, Gen Alpha is growing up with AI, and every generation seems to come with its own label, expectations and stereotypes.

Medicine, however, tells a different story.

“When we talk about clinicians across ‘generations’, it’s less about birth year — Gen Z or Gen Alpha — and more about professional archetypes,” says Dr GV Rao, Director, Chief of Surgical Gastroenterology, GI Oncology, Asian Institute of Gastroenterology. “Some build knowledge, some build teams, some build systems, and some build the future.”

Dr Rao calls them his “clinical gens” — different generations of behaviour within healthcare, rather than generations defined by age.

“I often think of healthcare teams as having their own ‘generations’ of behaviour — not generations by birth years.”

And he sees eight broad archetypes:

Gen A — Academicians: “Academicians build knowledge, shape evidence, and strengthen teaching.”

They keep medicine intellectually alive — questioning, teaching and strengthening the evidence on which clinical practice is built.

Gen C — Collaborators: “Collaborators connect specialties, align teams, and make multidisciplinary care work.”

As healthcare becomes more complex, collaboration is no longer an option. It is central to good clinical care.

“The best teams do not just have smart individuals; they have people who think differently, communicate differently, and contribute differently.”

Gen O — Observers: “Observers listen, watch, and detect patterns before others do.”

In medicine, sometimes what is noticed — or what does not quite fit — can be as important as what is immediately obvious.

Gen P — Practitioners: “Practitioners execute with precision and keep care moving.”

For all the advances in technology, medicine ultimately comes down to applying knowledge well — making decisions, treating patients and ensuring that care moves forward.

Gen I — Innovators:

“Innovators adopt new tools, workflows, and ideas early.”

But innovation is not simply about embracing everything new. It has to improve the way medicine is practised and, ultimately, benefit the patient.

Gen M — Mentors: “Mentors transfer skills, judgment, and values to the next generation.”

Some of the most important lessons in medicine cannot be learnt from a textbook. They come through observation, experience, conversations and watching an experienced clinician navigate difficult situations.

Gen S — Stewards: “Stewards protect standards, ethics, and patient safety.”

As healthcare becomes more technology-driven, this role becomes even more important. Progress, after all, cannot come at the expense of safety or ethics.

Gen R — Researchers: “Researchers provide answers through basic and translational research.”

They take clinical questions further — turning observations into research and research into evidence that can eventually change patient care.

One clinician, many gens: The interesting part, Dr Rao says, is that these categories are not fixed.

“There could be several permutations and combinations, and a clinician can be tagged by one or more archetypes.”

A clinician can be an Academician and a Researcher, a Practitioner and an Innovator, or a Mentor and a Collaborator.

“That is what makes a great clinical ecosystem,” he says. “It is not uniformity; it is complementarity.”

Perhaps that is the more useful way to think about generations in medicine. It is not about who belongs to Gen Z, Gen Alpha or any other age group. It is about what each person brings to the clinical table.

“In the end, every strong team needs thinkers, doers, connectors, mentors, innovators, stewards, and observers — all under the same roof.”

“It is not uniformity; it is complementarity. Every strong team needs thinkers, doers, connectors, mentors, innovators, stewards, and observers.”

— Dr G V Rao