Medical education follows the clinical drive toward patient-centered care and, therefore, puts strong emphasis on the development of empathy by medical students. It has, however, been found that there is a decline in empathy throughout a student’s education. Students’ participation in role-play as the doctor has been proved to improve patient care in a clinical capacity. Here, it is proposed that patient role-play can enhance patient care holistically, by enhancing key communication skills and student’s empathy.
Technology advances in medicine have led to increased usage of smartphones and applications in facilitating provision of care. As the increased power of technology paves the way for advances, it is fundamental that ethical considerations are comprehensively explored. This paper explores the importance of consent, confidentiality, and data security in use of smartphone applications for transferring medical information.
Technological advancements have revolutionized modern medicine and smartphones are now ubiquitous among health care professionals. The ability to look up information promptly is invaluable to doctors and medical students alike, but there is an additional contiguous benefit to patients. Queries can be answered more accurately through fingertip access to evidencebased medicine, and physicians have instant access to emergency care protocols. However, is consideration always extended to the patient's perception of the use of smartphones by doctors? Do patients know why we use smartphones to assist us in their care? What do they think when they see a doctor using a smartphone?An independent question, conducted within a wider service evaluation (ethical approval not required, full verbal and written electronic consent provided by all patients) at St. Mary's Hospital, London, indicated that although the majority (91.0%) of patients owned a smartphone, many (61.6%) did not agree that the use of smartphones at work by doctors is professional. This highlights the potential for damage to the doctor-patient relationship. There is a risk that these patients will disconnect with care services with possible detriment to their health. Additionally, it is notable that a larger proportion of those patients aged >70 years found the use of smartphones by doctors at work unprofessional, compared with patients aged <70 years.Adequate communication between the doctor and patient is critical in ensuring that doctors can make use of modern technology to provide the best possible care and that patients are comfortable with this and do not feel isolated or consider the doctor ignorant. It is suggested that moves are made to educate patients of the importance of the use of technology by doctors and to ensure that patients are aware of the reasons for which doctors use smartphones at work. Keywords: telehealth, smartphone, doctor-patient relationship, patient self-determination act Technological advancements have revolutionized modern medicine. Robot-assisted surgery has drastically enhanced a surgeon's performance, 1 while the automation of biochemical analysis and the recording of observations attempts to eliminate the potential for human error. While there is no doubt that technology improves clinical outcomes for patients on the whole, we question whether or not this aligns positively with holistic, patient-centered care.Smartphones are ubiquitous among health care professionals, and the number of health care applications (apps) available for clinical use is fast growing. As final year medical students, we are encouraged by clinical tutors to familiarize ourselves with
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