What Is a Clinician and What Does He Do?

A clinician is one whose prime function is to manage a sick person with the purpose of alleviating the total effect of his illness. The multifocal character of the impact of illness upon the patient and his family is stressed. Clinical evidence is the material with which the physician works, and a meticulous history and physical examination are paramount. The availability of more specific forms of therapy requires a clinician to be more of a scientist and, at the same time, more expert in clinical methods. Ability to listen and to talk, so that valid clinical evidence is gathered, anxieties are dissipated, and understanding and motivation are instilled, are the clinicians' greatest assets.