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A (re)Visit to an Old-Fashioned Doctor

Sensible Medicine

Old-fashioned doctors spend whatever time it takes to obtain a good medical history and physical examination. The history and physical exam is not something to be fetishized but something to be recognized as a time saver. An exam finding does, on occasion, make you feel more comfortable with your diagnosis.

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Friday Reflection 44: Diagnostic Enigma

Sensible Medicine

2 Common puzzles test diagnostic reasoning. Uncommon puzzles test knowledge of differential diagnoses. Take your time collecting the medical history, doing the physical exam, and reviewing the reams of outside records that are sure to accompany the patient. My habit is not to order tests at the first visit.

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Friday Reflection 31: 30 Years and Counting

Sensible Medicine

I’ll admit that I considered this near-delusional rambling, especially when I factored in his lack of symptoms and normal physical exam. This is what everyone fears, square D. “He had just seen his doctor and was told he was in perfect health.” ” This is a rare situation. I wish I had paid more attention.

Hospice 272
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Friday Reflection 27: The Poor Historian

Sensible Medicine

Often, the inability of a doctor to obtain a history is actually a physical exam finding – an extremely non-specific finding, but a finding nonetheless. However, contrary to a standardized test on which the medical history is presented in a paragraph of clean prose, it requires skill to obtain a medical history.

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Rehumanizing the Patient Experience

Minority Nurse

We wait for the test results. Doctors see patients in rushed 15-minute appointments, often without a cursory physical exam. One aspect of being a healthcare consumer that can be most maddening is the hours of time spent waiting for things to happen. We wait to see the provider. We wait for our IV to be started.

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Friday Reflection 25: The Advice I’d Like to Give a Student Entering Medical School

Sensible Medicine

After taking his history and doing his physical exam, I recommended HIV testing. Each of our visits would begin with me taking care of any pressing concerns, and end with me recommending HIV testing. He spent much of the late 1980s in New York, working on his art, and having some risky sexual encounters. He would decline.

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Telehealth Analysis: The Pros & Cons

We Care Online

While video calls allow for visual assessments, certain aspects of a physical exam—such as checking vital signs, palpating areas of pain, or listening to a patient’s heart and lungs—cannot be replicated remotely. This limitation means that telehealth may not be suitable for all medical concerns.