Would you see this doctor again?

Just one glass of wine won't affect the SP's rating, right?
[The Doctor's Visit via wikimedia]

Many checklists contain a question like this: Would you see this doctor again? No pressure!

This question works best when the evaluation is more than a Yes/No question. With a binary scale I feel compelled to mark "Yes" in all but the most egregious encounters.

But honestly, the answer is usually a little more nuanced. As a patient, I am likely to see a doctor again even if I had a pretty mediocre experience. The trouble of finding a new doctor doesn't seem worth it unless it was truly a terrible experience. So "Yes, but..." would probably be a more realistic answer for most of my patients.

Some schools offer a scale that looks more like Definitely Yes, Probably, Maybe/Not Sure, Probably Not, and Definitely Not. That feels a bit easier to pick an option that feels true for that encounter. When I use that scale, most of my students are rated Probably or Maybe. Exceptional students rise to Definitely Yes and difficult encounters, mercifully few, sink to Probably Not. Have I ever used a Definitely Not? If I'm not sure, I probably haven't, because the encounter would be undoubtably seared into my brain.

The big question is: who sees the results of this question? Would you see this doctor again is a much trickier question to answer if you know the student will see the rating directly, because who wants to be rated "No" or even "Maybe"? Fortunately, most schools I work with spare the students this ego-crushing rating. Instead, they filter it through the faculty, who can see the ratings in aggregate and compare other SP ratings for that student to see if there are any red flags they should be watching for. But I didn't know that when I was first starting out, so it seemed like the student's delicate sense of self hung in the balance between my keyboard and mouse.

Extra credit!
Some SPs mark this from the perspective of an SP, which I think is unfair. Given the SP's understanding of the case, they may mark a student down for not having done a particular medical procedure or asked a particular question they consider crucial to the case -- but I feel that the student has already been marked down elsewhere on the checklist, if so. So I only respond based on how I feel the patient I am playing would have answered the question.

Setting the standard:
If this question is asked, it should be at least a 3-point scale: Yes, Maybe, No. It should include a place for comments. Students should probably not see these directly. SPs should be aware of the outcome of this evaluative statement.