Medical students encounter many challenges on their path to success, from managing their time, applying theory to practice, and passing exams. The Medical Student Survival Skills series helps medical students navigate core subjects of the curriculum, providing accessible, short reference guides for OSCE preparation and hospital placements. These guides are the perfect tool for achieving clinical success.
Medical Student Survival Skills: History Taking and Communication Skills is a concise and compact guide to obtaining and recording medical histories and achieving positive patient interactions. The first section explores taking history—from initial introduction to identifying symptoms—and includes abdominal and chest pain, dizziness and vertigo, shortness of breath, sexual history, confusion and loss of memory. Essential patient communication skills and strategies for various situations are described in the second section, including angry patients, instances of drug and alcohol abuse, diabetes counselling and breaking bad news.
Table of contents
History Taking
1.History Taking: Abdominal distention
2.History Taking: Abdominal pain in pregnancy
3.History Taking: Abdominal Pain
4.History Taking: Alcohol Intake
5.History Taking: Amenorrhoea
6.History Taking: Anxiety
7.History Taking: Ataxia
8.History Taking: Back Pain
9.History Taking: Chest Pain
10.History Taking: Collapse & Loss of Conciousness(LOC)
11.History Taking: Confusion
12.History Taking: Constipation
13.History Taking: Cough
14.History Taking: Deliberate Self Harm
15.History Taking: Diarrhoea
16.History Taking: dizziness and vertigo
17.History Taking: Dyspepsia
18.History Taking: Dysphagia
19.History Taking: Dysphasia
20.History Taking: Dysuria
21.History Taking: Otalgia – Ear Ache
22.History Taking: Falls
23.History Taking: Fever
24.History Taking: Haematemesis
25.History Taking: Haematuria
26.History Taking: Haemoptysis
27.History Taking: Headache
28.History Taking: Hoarseness
29.History Taking: Jaundice
30.History taking: Joint Pain
31.History Taking: Acute Leg Pain (Ischaemic Leg)
32.History Taking: Leg Ulcer
33.History Taking: Loin Pain
34.History Taking: Loss of Memory
35.History Taking: Low Mood
36.History Taking: Lumps and Bumps
37.History Taking: Malaena
38.History Taking: Menorrhagia
39.History Taking: Nausea
40.History Taking: Numbness and Weakness
41.History Taking Paeditarics: Diarrhoea
42.History Taking Paediatrics: Convulsions/seizures
43.History Taking Paediatrics: Difficulty in breathing
44.History Taking Paediatrics: Non Specific Unwell Neonate
45.History Taking Paediatrics: Vomiting
46.History Taking Paediatrics : Wheeze
47.History Taking: Pain
48.History Taking: Palpitations
49.History Taking: Paresthesias
50.History Taking: PR Bleeding
51.History Taking: Pre Operative Assessment
52.History Taking: PV Bleeding in Pregnancy
53.History Taking: Pruritus
54.History Taking: PV bleed
55.History Taking: PV discharge
56.History Taking: Rash
57.History Taking: Red eye – painless
58.History Taking: Red eye – painful
59.History Taking: Seizure
60.History Taking: Sexual History from a female patient
61.History Taking: Sexual History from a male patient
62.History Taking: Shortness of breath
63.History Taking: Stridor
64.History Taking: Substance Misuse
65.History Taking: Swollen legs/ankles
66.History Taking: Syncope
67.History Taking: Tiredness/Lethargy
68.History Taking: Tremor
69.History Taking: Unilateral Leg Swelling
70.History Taking : Varicose Veins
71.History Taking: Vomiting
72.History Taking: Weight gain
73.History Taking: Weight Loss
74.History Taking: Wheeze
Communication Skills
1.Communication Skills: Alcohol Advice
2.Communication: The Angry Patient
3.Communication: Breaking Bad News (result)
4.Communication Skills: The Deaf Patient
5.Communication: Diabetes Counselling
6.Communication: Explaining a clinical procedure
7.Communication: Insulin Counselling
8.Communication: Lifestyle advice post Myocardial Infarction
9.Communication: Cessation of smoking
10.Communication: Oral steroids: Counselling
