Aug 10, 2020
"I would never have learned that this SP was as nervous as me had I not taken his pulse. ... As imaging technology and electronic records pull us away from the bedside, perhaps the unique privilege of performing something as intimate as the physical exam will help us keep the patient at the center of our care."
Medical student Michael Wang reflects on a standardized patient encounter that reminded him about the genuine connection between patients and physicians that can come from the physical exam.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the August 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.