You are a third-year medical student on a rotation at a community clinic for the underserved. A patient comes in worried and concerned about a sore throat. Your supervisor, Dr. Gerberoodle, tells you to not worry about the patient because he is a hypochondriac, and to give him a placebo pill (i.e., a sugar pill) to get the patient to leave. What would you do?

In this scenario, my supervisor, Dr. Gerberoodle, has made a concerning comment that can be said to be dismissive toward the patient. I understand that my supervisor may have the patient's best interest in mind—that is, my supervisor may believe that such an approach would be the best way forward to give this patient peace of mind—but this approach may lead to a missed critical diagnosis. Furthermore, giving out placebo medications might be inter... (+ 222 words)