Of all the skills first- and second-year medical students are expected to cultivate during their training, the one that may not receive the attention it deserves is how to establish effective physician-patient relationship. These techniques often lie outside the traditional diagnostic, treatment and technical realms but are invaluable to physicians, regardless of the specialty they practice. As it becomes more and more evident that good interactions with patients facilitate the healing process, physicians need a guide to developing these crucial bonds. This updated text leads the physician-in-training through the world of patients’ concerns, with three main sections: The Patient , The Doctor , and Society . The contributions, from nationally respected practitioners, delve into the many aspects of doctors’ interactions with the world around them, and include discussions on: becoming a physician, with attention paid to the effects of the demanding educational/training process of the individual student; basic clinical skills such as interviewing, physical examination, laboratory testing, diagnosis, and accurate record keeping; new approaches to improve decision making, patient education and negotiation, chronic illness management, counselling for behaviour change, and functional status assessment; and the cultural world of the patient, including the varied issues that make each patient a unique case. Case studies are also included which vividly bring to life these concepts, and recommendations for further reading are offered.