Doodling in class isn't what the teacher usually wants. But for a group of medical students in Chicago, it is exactly what they should be doing.
The crayons are there to help them become well-rounded doctors - by drawing cartoons.
The idea is that drawing the images, complete with speech bubbles, helps future doctors think about how they relate to patients in what they say, but also through body language.
In the cartoon strip commissioned especially for the article, the graphic artist and former HIV/Aids nurse MK Czerwiec explores how a doctor's brisk and breezy attitude towards a cancer patient makes her feel like "just another lab result". MK Czerwoec has also added drawing cartoons to the curriculum at the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University in Chicago, where she teaches.
Alexandra Jones is one of the Chicago medical students trying out the comic strip idea.
She said drawing a sickbed scene helped her understand the dynamics of a consultation from the patient's point of view. "It allows a good outlet for humour and kind of self-expression at times when it could seem insensitive or difficult to express otherwise."
Good doctor-patient communication does create tangible benefits for patients. Research has found that a doctor's good communication skills increase patient satisfaction - but also that it can improve physical health too - relieving symptoms like pain and improving measures like blood pressure and blood sugar levels
It's still too early to assess the full impact of comics on clinical outcomes. But Dr Ian Williams - a British comic artist, physician and joint editor of the Graphic Medicine website is confident that they have a role to play.
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