I have never tried to be a virtual professor, but I learned from this experience how much organization is required, and probably a lot more time, at least if the teacher is going to stay in email contact with each student individually, as mine did. But all of my teaching work has been done face to face, and I have to say I prefer it that way. Not every student who has a question is willing to raise a hand, but in person, I can see confusion crossing someone’s face. Then again, a student was weeping in my office just the other day. She could have confided in me over the internet, but then, how would I have handed her a tissue?

Thanks, Jesse, for your thoughtful story. There are still doctors who make house calls, but from what I could discover online, you either have to pay a premium to belong to a concierge practice or meet low income criteria for regions that are served by groups like the Visiting Physicians Association. With so much attention to the bottom line in medical services, I think most of us will never have the benefits of home visits that meant so much to our parents when we were kids. Still, I feel very lucky to have a team of doctors whose compassion and willingness to take time with me makes up for the lack of convenience.