Doctors and people skills. Medical Schools are Trying to Improve This Important Component of Care One of the biggest to a successful doctor patient relationship has to to with communication skills. Have you ever been to a doctor who talked at you, not with you and found the encounter difficult, or found the doctor just seemed not to care. Patients who visit our offices know we will speak with them, not at them and communication is the key. Poor communication between doctors and patients is one of the main drivers of malpractice claims as well. Simply explained, people are less likely to sue someone they like or believed generally cared about them. Caring, or the ability to show you care is essential in todays health care environment. Apparently, medical schools are now up for the challenge to improve how doctors communicate. Check out this article. I think medical schools are on the right track. It is not only how smart your doctor is, but how rounded they are which is also important. New for Aspiring Doctors, the People Skills Test By GARDINER HARRIS Published: July 10, 2011 ROANOKE, Va. — Doctors save lives, but they can sometimes be insufferable know-it-alls who bully nurses and do not listen to patients. Medical schools have traditionally done little to screen out such flawed applicants or to train them to behave better, but that is changing. Read the rest of the article here…