The collaborative model of doctor-patient consultation - Is it always culturally appropriate? What do doctors and patients need to know to make it work in intercultural contexts?

This article questions the assumption that a collaborative, participatory model of medical interview (as taught in most contemporary Western universities) is necessarily the most suitable and effective in cross-cultural interactions between doctors and patients. It highlights some of the challenges for international students in mastering this model, and extends Koehn s concept of the medical interview as involving mutual teaching to suggest a role for the doctor as a cultural informant who helps patients to acquire the medical literacy and skills required to participate effectively