Medical students, doctors—is there a difference?

Abstract

In this article, an analysis of medical student-patient interaction is presented. The analysis is based on the methodology of conversation analysis and draws on related work within the field of doctor-patient interaction analysis. The problem doctors and patients experience with regard to patient-initiated questions have been well researched, but little has previously been known about how medical students handle patient-initiated questions. Topic shifts represent an area which often is laden with interactional trouble and is therefore a key element in the analysis of doctor-patient and student-patient interaction. Previous theoretical explorations within the fields of topic shifts and cohesion are used as a basis for a detailed characterization and grouping of the responses medical students give to various types of patient-initiated questions. It is argued that although there are some differences in the responses given by students compared to those of doctors, medical student-patient interaction to a large extent resembles doctor-patient interaction