SummaryThirty‐two university‐based doctors and sixty‐seven medical students used a visual analogue scale (VAS) to estimate the usefulness of the inspection‐palpation‐percussion‐auscultation (IPPA) approach. Doctors considered IPPA less useful in the examination of the musculoskeletal system than in other systems, both in clinical practice (P<0.01) and as an aid in teaching (P<001). Students rated IPPA less useful in the musculoskeletal examination than in other systems as a learning aid (P<0.001). Based on these findings, an alternative model for physical examination of the musculoskeletal system was devised, using inspection, palpation and other clinical methods only when required to reach a diagnosis. The model focused on the outcome of the diagnostic process (aetiological, anatomical/ pathophysiological and functional diagnoses) rather than on the process itself. Thirteen students taught this method found it a useful learning aid. Those familiar with both methods preferred the outcome‐oriented to the IPPA met