What will the practice of medicine be like when people use publicly-available performance data to choose their physicians, own their own medical records and therefore exercise more control over medical decision making than has ever been seen in the past? What do these changes mean for the preparation of physicians? The Institute of Medicine has set forth six aims for health care in the United States, that it be safe, effective, patient-centered, timely, efficient and equitable. Achieving this requires new rules for our work in health care and new goals for medical education. The University of Missouri-Columbia School of Medicine has identified eight key characteristics of its graduating students and residents. We believe these are the qualities required for future physicians to deliver the care that their patients need and deserve.