Increasingly, physicians are using telephone visits for assessment of acute problems, usefully triaging who should come in urgently, who can wait for the next available appointment, and all options in between.

Explanatory model differences virtually always arise when the patient is using another language (akin to the Sapir–Whorf hypothesis which postulates that language inextricably influences and guides the attitudes, cultural beliefs, and views of the user).

Screening devices for depression include the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), Beck, Zung, and Hamilton scales.

The “Stages of Change Model” described by Prochaska and DiClemente involves ascertaining the patient’s stage of readiness for change and adapting one’s interaction to the patient’s stage.