Medical Humanities

Art

Background:

Medical humanities is an interdisciplinary field of medicine which includes the humanities (literature, philosophy, ethics, history and religion), social science (anthropology, cultural studies, psychology, sociology), and the arts (literature, theater, film, and visual arts) and their application to medical education and practice. In short, it is a broad area of study and practice encompassing all nontechnical or human aspects of medicine.

Importances:

1. The humanities and arts provide insight into the human condition, suffering, personhood, our responsibility to each other, and offer a historical perspective on medical practice.
2. Attention to literature and the arts helps to develop and nurture skills of observation, analysis, empathy, and self-reflection (skills that are essential for humane medical care).
3. The social sciences help us to understand how bioscience and medicine take place within cultural and social contexts and how culture interacts with the individual experience of illness and the way medicine is practiced.

Goals:

1. The study of the human aspects of medicine from within traditional arts disciplines of history, philosophy, sociology and literature.
2. The intersection of medicine and the creative arts.
3. The training of more insightful and compassionate doctors.

A Poem by Emily Dickinson:

I heard a Fly buzz – when I died -
The Stillness in the Room
Was like the Stillness in the Air -
Between the Heaves of Storm -

The Eyes around – had wrung them dry -
And Breaths were gathering firm
For that last Onset – when the King
Be witnessed – in the Room -

I willed my Keepsakes – Signed away
What portion of me be
Assignable – and then it was
There interposed a Fly -

With Blue – uncertain stumbling Buzz -
Between the light – and me -
And then the Windows failed – and then
I could not see to see -

What I know:

Medical humanities sessions titled “Sparshanam” (Touch) are conducted once a week in Kist Medical College (Nepal). Learning medical humanities is entirely a different experience compared to other subjects.

Session activities:
1. Students are grouped into 5 groups named after important personalities contributing in medical humanities.

2. Facilitators present and provide background about the topic of the session.

3. Interpreting arts and literature: Each group is given 5 minutes to interpret and present about the paintings, poems and quotes given to them. It mainly focuses on 2 things:
a. What do you see?
b. What do you feel?

4. Facilitators then present the information about given arts and literature pieces.

5. Role play: Different groups are provided with different situations related to the topic of the session. Each group is given 10 minutes to prepare. Then these role play are displayed by various groups.

6. Facilitators give the feedback of session.

Session Titles:
1. Empathy
2. Doctor-patient relationship
3. The Patient
4. The Doctor
5. Breaking Bad News
6. Compliance

The sessions are really interactive and every one gets an opportunity to speak with their perspective. It surely aims to meet the mentioned 3 goals.

Medical Humanities Group: http://groups.google.com/group/kistmcmh

Popularity: 3%

Tags: KIST Medical College, Medical humanities, Nepal

Last updated: July 10, 2010