Doctors, nurses, aides, and caregivers learn a lot about a person's current health using some basic tools. With a stethoscope, one can hear more clearly the sound of the patient's breathing - listening for congestion of the lungs, for example. One can listen to the speed and regularity of the heart's beat, and to that of any little babies on the way (by holding the stethoscope up against the mother's abdomen). With a thermometer, one can measure the patient's temperature. 98.6 Fahrenheit give or take a few tenths of a degree, is normal for most humans. (A high temperature might suggest a virus or infection.) With an otoscope, one can check the eardrum, look for signs of infection or blockage or foreign objects. Blood pressure equipment measures - guess what - blood pressure. A scale measures weight, which can be documented so as to note any dramatic changes since last measured.

The older, mechanical equipment, if properly calibrated to current standards (regarding units of measurement and markers of 'normalcy' - a subject unto itself), has a history of being quite reliable. Some newer gadgets are hard to calibrate, and are affected by battery levels and some hi-tech factors as well. That said, some of these require less time to get a reading, and can be highly accurate if properly calibrated and maintained.

With the basic information yielded via these instruments, and a simple interview regarding pain and symptoms and 'how's it going' - one can learn quite a bit about the nature of any physical concerns that need attention.