Even during my induction phase, I focused on ways to develop my consultation skills. I was given the chance to observe experienced colleagues consult and picked up different 'consultation gems' that I felt I could use during my consultations. I practised using some of these key phrases and found that they helped me to develop communication tools that I could then adapt to different clinical scenarios. I soon realised that it was not good enough to simply repeat these phrases, but rather they had to flow naturally as I developed my own style.There are several consultation models that trainees should be familiar with. When I started at the surgery, one of the trainers, Cyrus Fernandes, introduced me to his consultation model, which he has described previously in Crammer's Corner (InnovAiT 2012: 5(6)) and which is summarised in Figure 1. I found it very simple to apply and it suited my consultation style. I started using this from the onset, and gradually it started to feel like second nature with continuous practice. I found that I internalised this structure with which I could approach all clinical dilemmas, but also understood the importance of not being formulaic or mechanical in my style of delivery.
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