[How do I come across like an authentic doctor?]

'The more my patient looks like a real patient, the more I will look like a real doctor.' Certain young medical professionals may think that way, as they widen the gap between themselves as 'trained professionals' and their patients as 'ignorant laymen'. Medical doctors and patients have a relationship with each other. They both play their respective part: the doctor acts like a doctor. But what kind of role does the patient have and how do they influence each other? David Engelhard, both patient (with multiple sclerosis) and trainer in professional performances, describes two situations he experienced in hospital. First, a young neurologist in training seemed to push him into a template of her idea of a typical patient, apparently in order to reinforce her role as a doctor. The second situation is an example of a trained specialist who acted in such a way that he adopted the role of an authentic doctor independently.