Is it an end of the art of “Physical Examination” in the COVID-19 pandemic?

Abstract

The COVID-19 infection has been causing significant burden on the health infrastructure of almost every country and the COVID-related mortalities and morbidities translate into a significant impact on the societal perspective. Adequate precautions are mandatory for the healthcare workers managing patients at healthcare facilities like use of personal protective equipment (PPE) while handling patients. The clinical examination forms an important tool in the evaluation of any patient. For the last few years, the clinical skills of the clinicians have been on the decline noticed by the medical fraternity. The clinicians have become increasingly reliant on investigation reports and imaging technologies to diagnose and manage the patient. The situation of COVID-19 and management of these patients in COVID care hospitals and centers have further diminished the role of clinical skills with the added difficulties of wearing the full component of PPE during the patient evaluation and care. Patients are isolated as per the protocol, and doctors are forced to avail the telemedicine facilities and depend on the objective data provided by the junior doctors or paramedics. The pondering question is, have we reached a new tipping point in the utility of clinical diagnosis, making it further alienated in the future? We will have to wait and see if the clinical skill utility change caused by this pandemic would have a lasting effect.

Keywords

• clinical examination
• clinician
• covid
• pandemic