Studies have indicated that inpatients are generally tolerant of having medical students as part of their care-giving team. The purpose of this study was to identify what patients perceive to be the specific benefits or disadvantages that students contribute to patient care. Eighty-eight randomly selected surgical patients were interviewed by one of two surgical faculty members using a questionnaire that covered 12 variables regarding patient care. Patients were asked to rate the extent to which medical students improved or worsened their hospital stay using a scale from strongly disagree to strongly agree.Of 88 initial selected patients, 3 refused to be interviewed, and 1 was too confused to participate. Results of the survey found that patients thought favorably of student involvement in their care regardless of students' clinical abilities, experience, or the age of the patient. Among the most common reported benefits were that students showed a willingness to answer questions, did not appear to rush to complete patient care, and conversed in language that was easy to understand. Ninety percent of patients reported that they would allow medical student involvement in their care in the future. The authors conclude that positive patient perceptions of students are a valuable feedback tool not only for students, but also for physicians who feel that students can be a burden, or an obstacle to quality patient care.