There are complex ethical dilemmas inherent to medicine teaching, particularly in clinical practice involving actual patients. Questions must be raised on fulfilling medical students' training needs while still respecting patients' fundamental rights to autonomy and privacy. We aimed to assess patients' perspectives regarding medical students' involvement in their medical care. An observational, cross-sectional study was developed, and a questionnaire was applied randomly to patients waiting for a consultation/admitted to three distinct departments: General Surgery, Obstetrics/Gynaecology, and Infectious Diseases. Of the 77% interviewed patients who reported previous experiences with medical students, only 59% stated that they were asked for consent for their participation, and 28% stated that students had adequately introduced themselves. Patients from Gynaecology/Obstetrics were the ones who reported lower rates of these practices and were also the ones who were most bothered by students' presence, stating that they would be more comfortable without the presence of medical students. Male patients received more explanations than female patients regarding the same matters. Thirty-five percent of patients stated that they would feel more comfortable without the medical students' presence. The study shows a need to pay closer attention to fulfilling patients' fundamental rights.
Keywords: autonomy; medical education; medical ethics; patients’ perspectives.