PERSPECTIVES ON PATIENT-DOCTOR COMMUNICATION

Until recently, the content, structure, and function of communication between doctors and patients has received little attention and has bee n excluded from the realm of scientific inquiry; as a result, most cli nicians have had little formal training in communication skills. In th is paper leaders in doctor-patient communication present four approach es that are currently used as the basis for clinical training and rese arch, summarize the progress made in forming a consensus, and outline the implications of these perceptions for practicing physicians.