Oral Presentations

Chapter 12 Oral Presentations



Matthew J. Kapklein, MD, MPH


Oral presentations take a myriad of forms and occur in multiple settings. What follows is a sample of presentation types and the settings in which they may be encountered:


Formal, complete presentations: Case conferences

Summary presentations: Attending rounds

Focused presentations: Consultation requests

Systems-based presentations: Work rounds on complex patients

Problem-based presentations: Transfers of care between residents

Bullet updates: Transfers of care on mutually known patients

Each has its own unique skill set, but some principles apply to all.


Oral presentations follow different structures. Most medical students are taught the classic, complete, formal presentation format, which is rarely used in daily medical practice. For example, birth history, feeding history, growth/development, immunizations, family history, social history, and review of systems are not included in most presentations pediatricians make to each other. Far more important are an assessment and proposed plan, which should be parts of every presentation.



Interpersonal and Communication Skills


As in all communication, presentations should be approached with advance knowledge of the goals and frame of reference of speaker and listeners, as well as the context in which the exchange is taking place. Let’s take an example of an infant who presents to an emergency department (ED) with evidence of congestive heart failure (CHF) (failure to thrive, dyspnea with feeding, a murmur on auscultation, and cardiomegaly on chest radiograph). As the resident caring for the child, you may present this case several times:




























Listener Presentation Type Your Goals
ED attending Summary Summarize history/examination/assessment, develop plan
Hospitalist Summary Acceptance for hospital admission
Cardiologist Focused Request echocardiogram
Ward resident Problem-based Transfer care, summarize course and current plans
Department chair Formal Education on diagnosis/management of CHF

The amount of detail you provide for each presentation will also differ depending on the context.


People think in terms of narrative, and patients/caregivers tend to tell their medical histories in the forms of stories. However, many details of these narratives add little, if anything, to the medical history. Compare the following:



XZ is a 6-month-old boy who presents with a 2-month history of failing to gain weight. He was a full-term baby. He was growing well up to age 4 months, when he was noted to have gained only 4 ounces in the previous month. At that time he was being fed with Enfamil. His mother brought him to her pediatrician, who recommended changing his formula to Similac, which she did. Two weeks later he returned for a weight check, which showed that his weight had gone up 2 ounces, but the mother recalls that this was measured on a different scale than the previous visit. His mother says he did not seem to like the Similac because he cried and fussed while eating. He returned to his pediatrician another 2 weeks later and this time was remeasured on the same scale as the first visit, and was found to have not gained weight since the 4-month visit. Because of the fussing with feeds, the pediatrician changed the formula to Nutramigen, which the mother says he also does not like.


With this:



XZ is a 6-month-old former full-term boy who presents with a 2-month history of failure to thrive. He cries and fusses with feeding, and his formula has been changed several times.

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Related posts:

  1. Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (Case 1)
  2. Newborn Hearing Screen (Case 22)
  3. Pediatric Poisonings (Case 54)
  4. Note Writing

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Jul 18, 2016 | Posted by in PEDIATRICS | Comments Off on Oral Presentations

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