The decline of clinical contact in medicine.

Patient contact with medical students and clinicians may be on the decline. Increasing medical graduate numbers, workforce and training demands, and the institution of safe working hours are putting pressure on opportunities for direct clinical interaction. Medical education curricula and clinical postgraduate education supervisors must ensure that students and junior doctors recognise the importance of hands-on clinical contact with patients. Although many new developments aid health care efficiencies and can assist with the complexities of care required in a modern hospital, clinicians need to maintain their focus on the patient.