What do family medicine patients think about medical studentsʼ participation in their health care?

PURPOSE: To find out what patients think about students' involvement in their health care. METHOD: After conducting semistructured interviews with 24 patients, the authors developed a questionnaire addressing patients' concerns about student involvement in health care. The questionnaire was administered to 735 patients in academic and community settings; 575 (78%) patients responded. RESULTS: Most responding patients (90%) were willing to have a student involved in their health care. Those who were unwilling commonly cited privacy concerns. A third of the patients reported that the student did at least part of the physical examination. Three fourths of the patients who saw a student, and half of those who did not, said they appreciated or would appreciate the attention they got from a medical student. Almost half the patients (39%) perceived that student involvement lengthened their visits. CONCLUSION: Most patients in family medicine are willing to allow students to be involved in their care, and most perceive it as beneficial.