To the Editor: I read with interest the article on the "Decline of the medical history and physical examination" by Aid KF and colleagues [1]. I agree with the authors that the teaching of history taking, physical examination and rational thinking should begin in the medical schools. However many efforts have been' made to reform the medical curriculum but these have been unsuccessful in producing changes in the training of medical students. This is because they do not pay any attention to the hidden curriculum which is an important concept in any professional education including medical education. The hidden curriculum consists of what is implicitly taught by example day-to-day, not the explicit teaching of lectures, grand rounds and seminars [2]. Physician role models affect the attitudes, practices and ethics of medical learners and foster professional values in trainees.
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