MEDICAL EDUCATION

Year : 2005  |  Volume : 12  |  Issue : 1  |  Page : 59

Teaching tips - General questions to consider

Khalid Al-Umran
Chief, Directorate of Medical EducationCollege of Medicine, King Faisal University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia

Correspondence Address:

Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None

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PMID: 23012074

• What do I think is going on even before I get into the room?
• Is this patient's age important to this case?
• Is this patient's gender important to this case?
• What are common causes of this problem in this population or geographic area?
• What is my objective for this visit? Is it just to address the identified problem or to do a more general assessment?
• What do I need to know about this complaint?
• How will I organize my data collection?
• How should I relate to the patient and/or family?
• What other medical history do I need?
• What social history do I need?
• Do I need to assess for substance abuse?
• Do I need family history?
• What kind of a review of systems should I perform?
• Have I asked about medication and allergy history?
• Have I asked about use of over-the-counter or alternative (such as herbal) medications?
• What kind of physical examination would be most appropriate?
• Do I need all of the physical examination techniques needed to assess this complaint?
• Are these techniques sensitive to and/or specific for a particular diagnosis?
• What is on my differential diagnosis? Have I included both the things that are probable and the things that are potentially serious?
• Do I need laboratory testing?
• Are there other diagnostics such as imaging studies that I should consider?
• Do I need a consultation?
• If I decide to treat, what are my treatment options?
• Is cost a factor in choosing a treatment?
• How well will this patient and/or family want (or be able) to adhere to this treatment plan?
• Are there health maintenance or health promotion needs for this patient?
• Should I address these needs on this visit, or is a follow-up visit necessary?
• Does this patient need follow-up for the presenting complaint?
• How will I know if my treatment has been effective?
• What cultural factors may be important in the diagnosis or treatment of this problem?
• Is there anything else I should be thinking about?