The art and the science of history-taking and physical examination: Its relevance in modern day medicine

History taking and physical examination which started as the bedrock of practice of clinical medicine many centuries ago has been challenged by advancement of practice of medicine through research and development, sociocultural changes, changes in patient and public expectations, amongst many other changes that have occurred over the centuries. These changes have accelerated during the last 100 years and transformed way doctors manage their patients with a tendency to distance from their patients and depend more than ever on machines in planning and executing their management. This article threads through these developments and discusses how such changes affected conventional approaches to history taking and physical examination.