New ways to interview potential future doctors

The New York Times had an article about new techniques that medical schools are using to interview potential medical students and future doctors. Rather than depending exclusively on test scores, grades and a single interview, some medical schools are using several smaller interviews, where potential students are asked to grapple with some of the issues facing the practice of medicine, including ethical issues and issues with insurance. The idea is to identify students with strong communication and interpersonal skills, skills which will be important to navigating the health care system. While grades are an important indicators of whether students will be able to handle the workload of a career in medicine, communication skills are an important indicator of how well the students will be able to provide care as doctors.