How a symbol influenced this patient encounter

I lightly knocked on the door of the next patient that I was set to obtain a history from. It was late in the morning in the middle of the week, and my mind was becoming increasingly preoccupied with deciding what to eat for lunch. My preceptor had allowed me to practice my history-taking skills with every patient that had an appointment with her that morning and had also given me the opportunity to report back to her with the information I collected before she saw the patient herself. It had been an awesome experience so far. After hearing a low-pitched “Come in!” I opened the door, stepped into the room, greeted the occupants of the room with an enthusiastic, “Hey, how are you?” and was instantly smacked with the pungent, putrid odor of cigarette smoke. I made a conscious effort not to wince. I then closed the door behind me and faced a Caucasian family of five that consisted of a father, a mother, and three young children. The parents were on the opposite side of the small room, sitting in two chairs that faced the door I just walked through. Two of the children were playing around with toys on the floor, and the patient was sitting on the bed. The patient, a boy who looked to be slightly younger than ten, looked a bit frail and thin. He was also wearing clothes that almost fit the description of a hunter: camo pants, tan boots, a dirty orange long-sleeve shirt, a camo jacket and a cap. While I was scanning the room, I had been quickly preparing the automated spiel...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - Category: General Medicine Authors: Tags: Education Pediatrics Source Type: blogs