We present a pedagogical proposal, which is not common in traditional medical schools. This proposal introduces the graduate student early on to a medical practice observation stage. Second semester students of the medical course were trained to observe patient consultations and interviews with health professionals in a participative way. They developed their learning ability and learned how to reflect on the health professional-client communication process from what they observed. Results indicate hat this experience provided students with their own personal style of approaching and interviewing the patients that emphasizes the integrity of the individual and the way in which he or she looks at their world, as opposed to the doctor-patient communication that happens during a structured anamnesis and in a medical consultation provided in an extremely busy outpatients department.
medical education; medical practice observation; interviews with health professionals; medical practice; professional practice