Exploring the Face-to-Face: Revisiting Patient-Doctor Relationships in a Time of Expanding Telemedicine

J Am Board Fam Med. 2021 Feb;34(Supplement):S252-S254. doi: 10.3122/jabfm.2021.S1.200398.ABSTRACTThe patient-doctor relationship lies at the heart of medicine. Confronted with the challenges of COVID-19, we find ourselves unable to provide care and comfort in the same physical space as our patients. As we are forced to reckon with telemedicine visits and contemplate continuing them in a postpandemic future, it is important to understand the difference relationally between telemedicine and face-to-face encounters. I will argue that face-to-face visits remain essential in establishing the most fundamentally human components of relationships: responsibility and vulnerability. This established bond assures fidelity in subsequent encounters, whether by phone, video, or in person.PMID:33622849 | DOI:10.3122/jabfm.2021.S1.200398
Source: American Family Physician - Category: Primary Care Authors: Source Type: research