title: Perceiving clinical evidence.
abstract: This paper demystifies clinical perception by explaining its mechanisms, using insights from neuroscience and evolutionary biology. Clinical diagnosis begins with rapid recognition using our imaging, perceptual (but non-verbal) brain, followed by guided search using our slower, verbal, reasoning brain. Experiential cognition can be (more or less) achieved by integrating these two ways of knowing. Perceptual expertise requires alertness and persistence to ensure clinical accuracy. Each clinician, as a self-aware participant-observer (SAPO) keeping track of what they're thinking 'as it happens', can study their perceptual accuracy, pattern matching, interpretation, motivation and judgement.
authors.affiliation: Emeritus Professor of Surgery and Founding Head, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney 2052, Australia. Ken.Cox@unsw.edu.au
authors.forename: Ken
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Cox
mesh_terms: D002983:Clinical Competence / Q000592:standards*; D019937:Diagnostic Techniques and Procedures / Q000592:standards*; D004501:Education, Medical / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D010465:Perception