It’s fundamental that medical students are aware of the importance of a doctor-patient relationship within which the patient is considered in its entirety and not as a passive receiver of assistance. Such relationship is essential to the realization of an effective treatment process and the spread of health within the population. It is now demonstrated what the impact of socio- economic and cultural determinants on the health of individuals is. In the light of this, on one hand it is vital to understand the patient’s right to attribute a personal meaning to his own disease experience. Otherwise, the risk is to promote actions that could be unnecessary and even eventually perceived as violent by the patient himself. On the other hand, it is necessary to focus also on the possibility for the subject to understand health-related information and to make decisions about his own state of health. Lastly, a dialogue that favours the autonomy and emancipation of the patient should be promoted. These aspects not only help to ensure the adequate adherence to therapies and to the directives of the professional, but also allow to limit the eventual development of chronicity or disability and an increased awareness on the importance of some means of prevention.

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