Anamnesis: The skill and art of clinical medicine

Abstract

Anamnesis (Greek: anamnese - memory) is a conversation with the patient in order to gather all the information that is essential for discovering the true nature of the disease and making an accurate diagnosis. The oft-quoted saying "Listen to your patient; he will tell you what his diagnosis is" shows the value of the anamnesis in diagnosis. It is believed that the anamnesis has the greatest importance in establishing the correct diagnosis. 50%-70% of the diagnosis is made already on the basis of the anamnesis. Proper history taking is a medical skill that requires from the examiner: good knowledge, a lot of time and patience. In addition, cultural behavior and certain personal qualities and skills of the doctor are also important. But taking an anamnesis is not only a science, but also a skill and an art, as it requires interpretation and clarification of the conversation with the patientAgood clinical assessmentcomes first, and it is reached after many years of practice. Patients with the same diseases can express their symptoms differently, so the main characteristic of medicine as an art is how the doctor interprets different descriptions of the same phenomenon. In the process of taking an anamnesis, doctors are detectives, and the patient (and family or companions) are witnesses. If we ask the right questions and make sure we really understand what the patient has experienced, we are much more likely to arrive at an accurate diagnosis quickly. The point of contact between art and science in medicine is where the doctor feels the emotion that brought the patient to the office. The doctor must not only listen to the words the patient uses, but clarify their meaning. When he learns this, he becomes an artist of the best kind.