I used to work as a Medical Assistant in an ophthalmology office. I had experience with documenting the patient’s chief complaint, past medical history, family history, and medication. At that time, my main job was to ask a similar set of questions to almost all the patients and record their answers. I didn’t need to start formulating differential diagnoses during the interview process and I didn’t know what pertinent positives and negatives to ask for. These are the skills I learned during the clinical correlation class.

At the beginning of this course, I found it difficult to ask meaningful/useful questions and elicit the right HPI.  With more practice during this class, I become more organized at interviewing and gathering relevant information. As we gain more medical knowledge throughout the semesters, I feel more confident at developing a list of differentials and I can use these differentials to guide the interview, ask more targeted questions, and order diagnostic tests. These skills will be very important for my clinical rotations. Independent research and presentation skills are also emphasized in this course. I am more comfortable using resources like UpToDate and AccessMedicine.

During the clinical year, I need to continue to work on formulating a good list of differential. I also need to improve on developing a treatment plan. The patient might have multiple conditions but come in with only one complaint. Therefore, it’s important to not get tunnel-visioned and need to provide care in a holistic approach.