Take Home Points
- It is important to take time at the beginning of the educational experience to orient the student to your practice, the community, and the Clerkship. It also is important to discuss both your expectations and the expectations of the student.
- There are a variety of methods you can use to orient your student, including worksheets, written documents, involving others in the orientation process (e.g. staff), and/or having the student go through your office as a patient.
- Be sure to encourage patient acceptance in having a student in your office. This can be done by hanging a notice in your waiting room, submitting an article to a local newspaper, briefing staff about how to discuss the student with patients prior to the student interacting with them, asking the patient's permission (in private) to be seen by the student, and helping patients understand the benefits of having a student in the office.
- Having a student in your office will increase your workload a bit. However, there are many things you can do to facilitate this process through creative scheduling of your student's time.