Virtual Mentor. July 2000, Volume 2, Number 7.

Perspectives

Through the Patient's Eyes: Gertrude Stein Reads

Readers are referred to an article by Brenda Wineapple in a 1996 issue of JAMA to consider the experience of health care from the patient's perspective.

What is it like to be a patient experiencing a debilitating, potentially life-threatening illness or encountering the health care environment, perhaps for the first time, from a position of vulnerability? Through the stories of patients, physicians come to see themselves, and most especially their communications, from the other side of the equation. When patients — including physicians who become patients — voice their most intimate thoughts, feelings, and reactions, much can be learned.

July Patient Story

Wineapple B...Gertrude Stein Reads JAMA [A piece of my mind]. JAMA. 1996;276:1132-1133.

The viewpoints expressed on this site are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the AMA.