Here’s a sample request from a patient’s relative: “Dear Doctor, my father always comes back from visits to you empty-handed. When I ask about what transpired, he says, ‘Nothing much.’ He doesn’t want me to accompany him. He accuses me of suspecting early dementia, but I am very concerned that he is forgetting your recommendations. Would you mind if he records your conversation on his smartphone?”Is there anything wrong with a patient using his or her phone (or iPad) to record the conversation at a doctor’s visit? Could it be that our patients already are recording their visits without informing us?Doctors have long grappled with how to convey