Seeing Medicine: Learning to Read Between the Shadows

Every shadow on a scan carries weight. And every patient deserves someone who knows how to read between the shadows—and then, to speak gently about what they see.

Sonal Kumar reflects on clinical observation, which is not just a skill, but a language that must be taught deliberately and with care.

The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the April 2026 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at https://academic.oup.com/academicmedicine.