Table 2.

Student-led clinics patient experiences

Category	Anchor quote
High-quality and non-inferior to standard care	“So I was told beforehand that there were two appointments and I thought it was good, because otherwise the waiting time would have been relatively long. The student appointment shortened that considerably, I don't remember exactly, but it was definitely much earlier and finally also shortened the actual doctor's appointment quite a bit. Yes, it was good.” (…) So you went straight in and didn't have to do another hour of anamnesis.” (P 15, pos. 23, 31–33) “So from start to finish, that was super, really top notch. I never had the feeling that the students didn't care, or were heartless or anything, no. Top. One hundred points, one hundred percent. I can't say anything negative about that, absolutely not.” (P 11, pos. 30)
Awareness of workforce shortage and delegation to students	“It is okay that a doctor, who certainly also costs more, does not necessarily have to do the initial examination. I think a student can do that first, asking questions about how the disease has been perceived so far, what symptoms are there or not. So, I find that really good.” (P 2, pos. 35)
Competent, interested, sometimes even superior to physician-provided care	“So, if that had been a blind test now, I probably wouldn't have recognized any difference from a doctor.” (P 15, item 21) “I often work with students professionally and can say they are often more thorough than the registered doctors. My experience is that students/ inexperienced doctors often check everything ten times, try to take every possibility into account, and that doctors with more experience are quick to say: "Oh, no, that and that, of course.” (P 4, pos. 37–39)
Benefits for rheumatologists and students	“The student is not only there and observes, but also registers patients himself. So, writing, listening, talking, participating. One learns much more with it, than if one only runs along as a student.“ (P 13, pos. 21) “Yes, so I definitely assume that it is simply an advantage for the doctor because all these preliminary discussions have already taken place, because he simply has a basis on which he can continue.” (P 10, pos. 27)