--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Patients know in a heartbeat if they're…" description: "\"Patients know in a heartbeat if they're getting a clumsy exam.\" — Abraham Verghese" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/abraham-verghese-1533_clumsy_patients-know-in-a-heartbeat-if-they-re_1382916.png" --- # Patients know in a heartbeat if they're getting a clumsy… ![“Patients know in a heartbeat if they're getting a clumsy exam.” quote by Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/abraham-verghese-1533_clumsy_patients-know-in-a-heartbeat-if-they-re_1382916.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/abraham-verghese-1533_clumsy_patients-know-in-a-heartbeat-if-they-re_1382916.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/abraham-verghese-1533_clumsy_patients-know-in-a-heartbeat-if-they-re_1382916.png) > “Patients know in a heartbeat if they're getting a clumsy exam.” [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Patients instantly sense when an examination feels clumsy, reflecting the importance of skillful, compassionate care. **In simple terms:** Patients feel clumsy exams. Key Takeaway Practice gentle, attentive examination techniques. Themes medicine patient care empathy Mood reflective empathetic Type clinical educational When to use this quote - clinical training - patient interviews - medical education Key Concepts clinical skill bedside manner Questions to Reflect On - How can you improve your exam technique? - What signals indicate patient discomfort? A Different Perspective Even skilled doctors can appear clumsy under stress. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Doctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doctor/) [Exam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exam/) [Heartbeat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heartbeat/) [Patience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patience/) ## Related quotes > [Patients know what patients want to know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-debronkart/patients-know-what-patients-want-to-know/) [Dave deBronkart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-debronkart/) > [A lot of patients you know if you haven't seen them for 6 months or a year, you won't remember what medicines they're on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-davis/a-lot-of-patients-you-know-if-you-haven-t-seen-them-for-6-months-or-a/) [William Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-davis/) > [“Some People, we know in a heartbeat. Others, we'll never know, even if we speak to them for a thousand years.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nalini-singh/some-people-we-know-in-a-heartbeat-others-we-ll-never-know-even-if-we/) [Nalini Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nalini-singh/) > [I am alive today do not even know it! Heartbeat of us who feel your heart?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/i-am-alive-today-do-not-even-know-it-heartbeat-of-us-who-feel-your/) Mak\_786 > [I know a thousand things louder than a soldier's gun; I know the heartbeat of his mother.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-gibson/i-know-a-thousand-things-louder-than-a-soldier-s-gun-i-know-the/) [Andrea Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-gibson/) > [“Patients may not know how to measure clinical outcomes, and they may not understand the technical know-how that a doctor must have in order…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toby-cosgrove/patients-may-not-know-how-to-measure-clinical-outcomes-and-they-may/) Toby Cosgrove > [“most chronic pain patients I know tend to minimize their pain to try to seem as “normal” as possible. We don’t want to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-lee-richards/most-chronic-pain-patients-i-know-tend-to-minimize-their-pain-to-try/) Karen Lee Richards > [My sense is that the wonderful technology that we have to visualize the inside of the body often leaves physicians feeling that the exam…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/my-sense-is-that-the-wonderful-technology-that-we-have-to-visualize/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [There's something universal about illness... Whether you like it, at some level all patients are saying, 'Daddy, Mommy, help me, tell me it's going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/there-s-something-universal-about-illness-whether-you-like-it-at-some/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [As a young physician in the mid-'80s, caring for people who had contracted H.I.V., I lost two of my patients to suicide at a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/as-a-young-physician-in-the-mid-80s-caring-for-people-who-had/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [My deceased patients have taught me over the years to believe in the glass half full, to make good use of the time we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/my-deceased-patients-have-taught-me-over-the-years-to-believe-in-the/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [I think legislation needs to put an end to doctors profiting on businesses to which they can funnel patients - that is business, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/i-think-legislation-needs-to-put-an-end-to-doctors-profiting-on/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [Lets take away the incentives to do 'to' patients and instead create incentives to do 'for' patients, to be 'with' patients. We don't need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/lets-take-away-the-incentives-to-do-to-patients-and-instead-create/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [Early on a difficult climb, especially a solo climb, you’re hyper-aware of the abyss pulling at your back, constantly feeling its call, its immense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-krakauer/early-on-a-difficult-climb-especially-a-solo-climb-you-re-hyper-aware/) [Jon Krakauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-krakauer/) > [At 15 I was very clumsy, big feet and my footwork wasn't great. I was definitely not quick.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-de-minaur/at-15-i-was-very-clumsy-big-feet-and-my-footwork-wasn-t-great-i-was/) [Alex de Minaur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-de-minaur/) ## More by Abraham Verghese > [I've never bought this idea of taking a therapeutic distance. If I see a student or house staff cry, I take great faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/i-ve-never-bought-this-idea-of-taking-a-therapeutic-distance-if-i-see/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [I love to read poetry but I haven't written anything that I'm willing to show anybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/i-love-to-read-poetry-but-i-haven-t-written-anything-that-i-m-willing/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [We come unbidden into this life, and if we are lucky we find a purpose beyond starvation, misery, and early death which, lest we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/we-come-unbidden-into-this-life-and-if-we-are-lucky-we-find-a-purpose/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [I think America is really in denial about the degree to which residents, particularly foreign medical graduates, man the county hospitals of this country,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/i-think-america-is-really-in-denial-about-the-degree-to-which/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [“Do they listen?" He held up a finger. "Every year one does," he said, ginning, "But that one makes it worthwhile. Even Jesus only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/do-they-listen-he-held-up-a-finger-every-year-one-does-he-said/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [“It seems we humans never learn. And so we relearn the lesson every generation and then want to write epistles. We proselytize to our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/it-seems-we-humans-never-learn-and-so-we-relearn-the-lesson-every/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [It was all I had, all I've ever had, the only currency, the only proof that I was alive. Memory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/it-was-all-i-had-all-i-ve-ever-had-the-only-currency-the-only-proof/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [“There it was, Hema must have thought; it was both the sorry and the thank-you that was so long overdue, and the funny thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/there-it-was-hema-must-have-thought-it-was-both-the-sorry-and-the/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [“This is my life, I thought, as my taxi slogged through heavy traffic and inched through the tunnel to Logan Airport. I have excised…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/this-is-my-life-i-thought-as-my-taxi-slogged-through-heavy-traffic/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [“I could see that the almost mystical aura of this legendary surgeon -- the single-mindedness, the dedication, the skill -- was mere surface. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/i-could-see-that-the-almost-mystical-aura-of-this-legendary-surgeon/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [“As a child I'd longed for Thomas Stone or at least the idea of him. So many mornings I waited for him at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/as-a-child-i-d-longed-for-thomas-stone-or-at-least-the-idea-of-him-so/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [“The reader, knowing nothing about the ‘dark continent,’ filled in the blanks. Pictured Stone in a tent, kerosene lamp held up by a Hottentot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/the-reader-knowing-nothing-about-the-dark-continent-filled-in-the/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [“This was what growing up was about: hide the corpse, don't bare your heart, do make assumptions about the motives of others. They're certainly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/this-was-what-growing-up-was-about-hide-the-corpse-don-t-bare-your/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [“And as for my father? No, he wouldn't ever walk through those gates; I now knew that. Whatever Thomas Stone had, wherever he was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/and-as-for-my-father-no-he-wouldn-t-ever-walk-through-those-gates-i/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [“... telling herself stories about herself in a singsong voice, creating her own mythology.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/telling-herself-stories-about-herself-in-a-singsong-voice-creating/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) [Explore all 230 Abraham Verghese quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) ## More Clumsy quotes > [At 15 I was very clumsy, big feet and my footwork wasn't great. 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It is the most inefficient, the most clumsy, the most unpractical… It reduces wisdom to impotence and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-briffault/democracy-is-the-worst-form-of-government-it-is-the-most-inefficient/) [Robert Briffault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-briffault/) > [Conservatives say the government can't end poverty by force, but they believe it can use force to make people moral. Liberals say government can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-browne/conservatives-say-the-government-can-t-end-poverty-by-force-but-they/) [Harry Browne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-browne/) > [I am very, very old-fashioned and clumsy. I use those long reporter notebooks. This is what a troglodyte I am. The night before I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-quammen/i-am-very-very-old-fashioned-and-clumsy-i-use-those-long-reporter/) [David Quammen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-quammen/) > [You should not translate for more than two hours at a time. After that, you lose your edge, the language becomes clumsy, rigid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/you-should-not-translate-for-more-than-two-hours-at-a-time-after-that/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [“Are you ready to put the ‘fun’ in Fall Fun Fest?” he says as I slap his palm. “I can at least put the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-mills/are-you-ready-to-put-the-fun-in-fall-fun-fest-he-says-as-i-slap-his/) [Emma Mills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-mills/) > [The underlying crime in Watergate was a clumsy, third-rate burglary in an election campaign that turned out to be a landslide.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-t-conway-iii/the-underlying-crime-in-watergate-was-a-clumsy-third-rate-burglary-in/) [George T. Conway III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-t-conway-iii/) > [I readily admit that I have such a great respect for what happens in the human soul that I would be afraid of disturbing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/i-readily-admit-that-i-have-such-a-great-respect-for-what-happens-in/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) > [“His life was a constant war with insensate objects that fell apart, or attacked him, or refused to function, or viciously got themselves lost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/his-life-was-a-constant-war-with-insensate-objects-that-fell-apart-or/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [But at the same time, in reality, what a difference there is between the world today, and what it used to be! And with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/but-at-the-same-time-in-reality-what-a-difference-there-is-between/) [Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/) > [Im not a perfect girl. My hair doesnt always stay in place & I spill things alot. Im pretty clumsy & sometimes I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-not-a-perfect-girl-my-hair-doesnt-always-stay-in-place-i-spill/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A diary is more or less the work of a man of clay whose hands are clumsy and in whose eyes there is no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/a-diary-is-more-or-less-the-work-of-a-man-of-clay-whose-hands-are/) [Wallace Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/) > [Believe it or not, I'm a bit clumsy with technology. It's probably why I'm so excited about the touchscreen - even an idiot can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/believe-it-or-not-i-m-a-bit-clumsy-with-technology-it-s-probably-why/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [“Yet it is true that there was an absent mindedness about her which sometimes made her clumsy; she was apt to think of poetry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/yet-it-is-true-that-there-was-an-absent-mindedness-about-her-which/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) Browse all 245 Clumsy quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Patients know in a heartbeat if they're getting a clumsy exam.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Abraham Verghese" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/patients-know-in-a-heartbeat-if-they-re-getting-a-clumsy-exam/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Clumsy" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/patients-know-in-a-heartbeat-if-they-re-getting-a-clumsy-exam/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/abraham-verghese-1533_clumsy_patients-know-in-a-heartbeat-if-they-re_1382916.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/abraham-verghese-1533_clumsy_patients-know-in-a-heartbeat-if-they-re_1382916.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/abraham-verghese-1533_clumsy_patients-know-in-a-heartbeat-if-they-re_1382916.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Patients know in a heartbeat if they're getting a clumsy exam.” — Abraham Verghese", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Abraham Verghese", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Patients know in a heartbeat if...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/patients-know-in-a-heartbeat-if-they-re-getting-a-clumsy-exam/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/patients-know-in-a-heartbeat-if-they-re-getting-a-clumsy-exam/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```