title: Medical student/student doctor access to patients in an emergency department.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the proportion of patients in a teaching hospital ED who are available to medical students; identify barriers to student access to patients; and determine whether patients are more likely to be accessible if the term student doctor is used rather than medical student.
  
  
  METHODS
  Repeated cross-sectional study of the ED of a tertiary teaching hospital. Interviews were attempted with all patients in the ED during six 4 h periods. Outcome measures included: number of patients present and accessible to students; present but inaccessible, absent or unfit to be seen for clinical reasons; number of patients consenting to history, physical examination and certain procedures; and difference in patient consent between the terms 'medical student' and 'student doctor'.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Overall, 180 of 450 (40.0%) patients completed the interview, 72 (16.0%) were able to be observed only, and 198 (44.0%) were not suitable for interview or observation. The common reasons for patient unsuitability were: physically not available (60%), being assessed by a health professional or undergoing a procedure (13.0%) altered mental status (7.4%), unstable or terminally ill (5.2%); refusal to participate in the study (4.8%), or dangerous or under arrest (4.1%). No significant differences were found in patient willingness to undergo clinical skills from 'student doctors' compared with 'medical students'.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A minimum 40% of patients in a tertiary ED are accessible for student learning, with high proportions of patients accepting of students practising supervised history-taking, physical examination, and most less-invasive procedural skills.
authors.affiliation: Emergency Medicine, University of Western Australia, Royal Perth Hospital, Perth, Western Australia, Australia. tony.celenza@uwa.edu.au
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Celenza
authors.forename: Jesse
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Justin
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Teng
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001294:Attitude to Health; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006784:Hospitals, Teaching / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007258:Informed Consent / Q000523:psychology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010358:Patient Participation / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013663:Teaching / Q000379:methods*; D055815:Young Adult