In today's medical education curriculum, it is necessary for students to learn the proper techniques for taking medical histories, performing physical exams, and the appropriate way to educate and inform patients. The best way for a student to learn these skills is through hands-on training with a Standardized Patient (SP) - an actor who has been hired to portray a specific set of health problems and symptoms. This type of training allows students to grasp concepts more quickly and enables faculty physicians to directly observe student's progress and asses their need for further instruction. Working with SP's has become so important in medical education that it is now a component of the USMLE clinical skills assessment exam. As with any tool that is used for teaching, assessment, and certification, it is easier to provide the best service when there are general guidelines for preparers to follow. The coaches who prepare SP's are no exception and there needs to be a guide for those who train SP's for their roles in new doctor education. This handbook is intended as that guide and as a support for those who are involved in training Standardized Patients, from the art of coaching through preparing SP's for the physical exam, to encourage each coach to develop a system that will deliver the best results and, in the end, help train the most competent doctors.

Identifying the medical treatment guidelines that determine the appropriateness of treatment for California workers1 compensation recipients. Provides an evaluation of medical guidelines that might be used to determine the appropriateness of treatment for work-related injuries in California. Of 72 guideline sets that were identified and screened, five comprehensive sets were found to satisfy the legislative requirements and state preferences. Based on results of a comparative evaluation of the technical quality and clinical content of the five guideline sets, recommendations are given for actions the state might take in the short term, intermediate term, and longer term.