The questions surprise and delight Ms. Owens, who shared that her religious faith has played a big role in living with RA. She also wants to make sure students understand the importance of building therapeutic relationships with their patients founded on mutual respect, trust, and compassion.
A Student’s Point of View
From a student’s perspective, the LPEs play a foundational role in moving forward in their medical career, says Rebecca T. Brooks, MD, a former University of Nebraska Medical Center student and now an internal medicine resident with Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.
A medical student connects with Barbara Owens, who has rheumatoid arthritis, as he
gently examines her hands.
“During the preclinical years, you don’t get a lot of face time with patients. It’s almost a motivating factor to think about how studying applies to the future,” Dr. Brooks says.
She was particularly touched to see each patient’s physician in the room with them and witness how impactful that relationship was. “They knew about their [patient’s] gout and their grandchildren,” she says.
The LPEs also bring home the importance of certain decisions that a specialist may make, whether it’s submitting a pre-authorization form or investigating a new drug for a patient. Those decisions can help patients live more fruitful lives. “Our goal is to make them functional for what they want to do, not just for their clinical disease. If they want to cycle for 20 miles, then we treat them for that,” Dr. Brooks says. “It’s not just getting their uric acid lower, it’s helping patients live their life.”
Dr. Brooks also took part in another LPE within infectious disease, although it had a different format. During that one, the medical school students listened to and asked questions of a panel of patients with HIV.
Dr. Cannella shared take-home points written by another student after the December 2022 LPE. Here’s a slightly edited version of what that student wrote:
