What Skills Should Be Taught in Health Humanities Education?

Abstract

This essay argues that those working and teaching in the new field of Health Humanities should avoid definitions of their work that borrow from existing disciplines and focus instead on three fundamental skills. A case study is provided to differentiate health humanities questions from those typically asked by bioethicists. Three skills are given detailed examination: empathic listening, involving the capacity to expand our imagination to others; emotional equanimity, involving the ability to understand and learn from our emotional responses; and the de-centering skills of taming our moral vanity and recognizing the full humanity of others. These are not the only skills in play in health humanities, but these three are basic and will lead to the other skills needed.