Engaging the Poetic Perspective on Care of the Surgical Patient: Lessons from W.H. Auden's “Surgical Ward”

Abstract

Attention has been brought to the importance of cultivating empathy, communication skills, reflective writing, and self-care in surgeons-in-training. Classical literature and poetry pertaining to themes of surgery, specifically sonnets, can be exemplary methods for cultivating such skills. "Surgical Ward" by W.H. Auden is such a sonnet. Here we suggest that working poems such as "Surgical Ward" can cultivate transferable skillsfor analysis of text, context and subtext, as well as providing a substrate for discussion of multiple perspectives. These skills can aid in the development of surgical decision-making to produce positive outcomes, yet also benefit self-reflection when mistakes are inevitably made.