Medical Humanities Curriculum Research Articles

‘God knows why these Sanghaalis are so rabidly against C-section!’: spectre of medical coloniality haunts doctor-patient relationship in Guruprasad Kaginele’s Hijab (2020)

Through the lens of Guruprasad Kaginele’s novel Hijab, the issues of intolerance and distrust that exist in American rural hospitals—where the Indian immigrant doctors fail to understand the inhibitions and...

The Art Museum as a Training Ground for Residents in Nuclear Medicine and Radiology

ABSTRACT For the past seven years, we – a museum educator and an academic radiologist – have co-taught Seeing in Art and Medical Imaging, a first-of-its-kind medical humanities curriculum for residents in nuclear medicine and radiology based at the Harvard Art Museums. The program aims to foster residents’ close looking and clinical skills, self-reflection, and humanistic qualities. Here we describe some of the ways we engage trainee imaging physicians with works of art to help them prepare for a fulfilling, engaged, and sustainable career. We also offer some initial takeaways from the program’s anecdotal data. Finally, we discuss the Seeing in Art and Medicine exhibition, on view at the Harvard Art Museums in Fall 2023, which gave the public a window into this work.

Medical Humanities in Resident Training: A Pilot Study of Specific Courses in a Large Comprehensive Hospital in China.

The importance of integrating humanities into medical education has been recognized. However, the medical humanities curriculum is usually lacking during standardized training for residents in China. This study aims to determine the feasibility and effectiveness of pilot-specific courses in medical humanities in standardized residency training. We designed specific courses in medical humanities, composed of 3 courses: Identifying and Managing Common Psychological Disorders of Patients, Patient-Clinician Communication, and Medical Dispute Cases Analysis and Resolution. The courses were scheduled monthly throughout the one semester, and a total of 118 residents participated in the curriculum. Participants completed the evaluation containing ethic-legal knowledge and humanistic competencies related to course content before and after the curriculum. Most participant residents had a bachelor's degree (85.6%) and were in the first year of standardized residency training (61.0%). Their disciplinary backgrounds are diverse, encompassing 18 different clinical medical specialties. The residents' average scores of postcourse self-assessments keep a steady increase in humanistic competencies compared with precourse average scores. All postcourse self-assessments showed significant improvement compared to precourse (P < .05), particularly in influential communication skills and diagnostic associations of processing ability. The specific courses in medical humanities are feasible and effective in teaching residents in China. The pre-post course evaluation indicates that this humanities-based curriculum significantly improved residents' ethic-legal knowledge and humanistic competencies during standardized residency training.

'Food for thought' in devising aging-simulation experience.

Aging simulation (experiencing age-related functional decline), an educational tool commonly used in geriatrics education, is widely recognised for being able to drive positive attitudinal change toward older patient care. However, scholars1 warned that, given its focus on age-related limitations and disabilities, the method may lead junior medical students to take age-related barriers as impending and irrevocable, thereby reinforcing myths and negative assumptions on ‘growing old’. Prior research reported that, in aging simulation, interest in geriatric care (driven by empathy) might be achieved at the expense of worsening self-views on personal aging. To mitigate this unintended-side effect, a recommendation made was to integrate learning strategies of ‘demystifying myths’ and ‘experiencing aging’. Dysphagia is a health condition common in old age and often associated with malnutrition, pneumonia and dehydration. It can also be part of normal aging, given how the aetiologies also grow with age. Internationally, prevalence of dysphagia in aged care facilities has been estimated to be up to 40%. Yet, awareness and recognition of its impacts on one's lived experience are lacking among medical officers. While other age-related physiological changes such as walking difficulties, visual and hearing impairments are often covered in traditional aging simulation, dysphagia remains an unaddressed topic. In collaboration with a Hong Kong-based social enterpirse “The Project Futurus”, we piloted a 2.5-hour aging simulation workshop centred around dysphagia in old age. At a teaching kitchen, second-year MBBS students could personally relate to the mealtime experience of dysphagic older persons. The activity was part of a Medical Humanities Curriculum at HKU. Quota was capped at 20 owing to COVID restrictions. Instead of a focus on age-related difficulties and feelings of frustrations that usually characterize traditional aging simulation, our workshop, titled ‘Dignified meal and sparks for life’, exposes students to the realities of aging while shedding a positive light on wellbeing in old age: Before class, students were invited to experience food similar to porridge being served to dysphagic patients in the past. In class, students received (i) a mini-lecture demystifying dysphagia diet, and (ii) a live demonstration on using Japanese Engay (easy-to-swallow) cooking techniques to create more uplifting dysphagia diet with aesthetic appeal and texture. Then, students (iii) worked in groups to prepare and mould texture-modified meals, followed by (iv) tasting and debriefing on how the lived experience of dysphagic older persons could be transformed through person-centred care. We administered the validated UCLA Geriatrics Attitudes Scale (UCLA-GAS) to assess student attitudes toward older patient care, and Reactions to Ageing Questionnaire (RAQ) to assess attitudes toward personal aging. All participants (n = 20) completed pre- and post-questionnaires. Mean age was 19.5. Contrary to an earlier study,1 our workshop had improved attitudes toward geriatric patient care (p = 0.02) and personal aging (p = 0.042) in second-year undergraduate medical students. Cohen's d was 0.492 and 0.406, respectively, indicating moderate effect size in both measures. Despite a small sample, we have developed a new form of aging simulation pertaining to the human experience of dysphagia in old age. By integrating elements of ‘demystifying myths’ and re-orienting the activity's focal point from age-related difficulties to enablers of wellbeing, our pilot throws light on how aging simulation's unintended negative side-effect could be avoided.

Assessing Life Surveys of Medical Students and Need-Based Student Services

The purpose of this study was to analyze the results of a study on the psychological state, lifestyle, self-management ability, and academic adaptation of medical students, and to present examples of improvement of a student support center based on the results. A medical school in Daegu has been surveying the living conditions of students every year for 6 years since 2016. More than 60% of medical students experienced depression and more than 70% experienced stress, but these rates have significantly improved over the past 5 years. There were many cases of drinking or smoking to relieve stress, but the frequency of drinking recently decreased substantially. Some students had difficulties in emotional regulation (11.5%) and time management (16.6%), and challenges in planning and self-management increased significantly during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The satisfaction and adaptability of medical students are high, but the number of students who are not satisfied with but negative response rate is 2%-3% in every year. However, satisfaction has significantly increased in tandem with curriculum changes and COVID-19. Based on these data, the counseling system was reorganized to support psychological stability, the medical humanities curriculum was improved, and changes in actual quality of life were induced by developing and operating non-curricular programs. Furthermore, standardized questionnaires will be developed and data from many medical schools will be shared, which is expected to support medical students more effectively.

Being and Becoming: Narrative Records of Pediatric Critical Care Clinicians.

Medical humanities initiatives have been integrated in our Pediatric Critical Care program to help clinicians make meaning of key experiences in their professional and personal journeys. In particular, narrative medicine and clinicians' writings illuminate and commemorate these journeys and increase our understanding of our profession in its full complexity. In this piece, we provide an example of a medical humanities curriculum and a selection of pieces written by several participants in it. These pieces form a collective narrative, portraying aspects of our individual and collective biography.

A Pilot Study to Understand the Role of Medical Humanities in Medical Education.

Over the past 20years, the number of colleges offering programs in medical humanities has increased, and through the Medical Humanities Initiative at Georgetown University, this pilot study sought to understand students perceived benefits of a medical humanities curriculum. Based on a qualitative thematic analysis of free-response survey reflections from students enrolled in three unique medical humanities courses, six themes emerged. The themes help capture the role that a medical humanities education can play in shaping future clinicians and demonstrate that these courses not only provided a distinct teaching methodology from the scientific classroom but also appeared to deepen the students' understanding of the humanistic aspects of medicine and its many facets.

The Development of Evaluation Methods for Outcomes in Medical Humanities Curriculum of a Medical School

The Development of Evaluation Methods for Outcomes in Medical Humanities Curriculum of a Medical School

Beyond Traditional Medical Humanities: How Reading World Literature Focused on Health Relates to the Development of Empathy

Implementing a medical humanities curriculum in pre-professional health studies cultivates students’ practical expressions of virtue. Such a curriculum may vary across institutions, but it often encompasses core components such as humanities, history, and bioethics. Reading world literature, especially first-person narratives that embed health and emotions, allows readers to experience the narrator’s emotional states. Literary fictionality releases readers from social obligations, allowing them to empathize unreservedly for a fictional character in a direct exchange with the author. By referencing Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go, Salman Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children, and Tsitsi Dangarembga’s Nervous Conditions, I demonstrate that through the narrators, Kathy H., Saleem Sinai, and Tambu, respectively, readers encounter intimate details of emotions in recurring themes of love, health, and identity. From the narrators’ perspectives, readers establish a foundation for the fictional characters before being exposed to their emotions and health and mental alteration, which invite empathy. These attributes of health-related world literature, which may be beneficial in the context of medical humanities, have not been broadly discussed. Given the expansion of medical humanities, I propose that reading world literature focused on health also represents a new, nontraditional genre. Further, I contend that medical humanities curricula should include health-focused world literature. By predisposing pre-health students to empathy and cultural awareness, they better understand and feel for patients while caring for them.

Introduction and reflection on the curriculum "society, the individual & medicine" in university of Ottawa faculty of medicine

Taking the curriculum society, the individual & in university of Ottawa faculty of medicine as an example, the cultivation models for comprehensive quality of medical students in China and Canada was compared. In University of Ottawa faculty of medicine, the curriculum society, the individual & is throughout the whole medical education, including three themes of statistics and epidemiology related knowledge, health related issues and professional development. The varied teaching modes are combined with electronic teaching equipment and students' subjectivity in learning is emphasized. Drawing insights from the medical education in Canada, we should focus on promoting early contact and lifelong study of medical humanities curriculum for medical students, enriching the curriculum content, enhancing the curriculum practicality, diversifying the teaching methods, strengthening the teachers' training, improving the assessment system and establishing the long-term mechanism. Key words: University of Ottawa's faculty of medicine; Medical education; Curriculum

The great medical questions—and beyond: A medical-humanities curriculum

Abstract from the Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Medical Humanities in the Middle East; 2018 Nov 17-18: Doha, Qatar.

Does Pre-clerkship Medical Humanities Curriculum Support Professional Identity Formation? Early Insights from a Qualitative Study.

There is a lack of consensus about the outcomes of medical humanities training. In this qualitative study, the authors analyzed pre-clerkship small group discussions to assess the nature of learning in medical humanities. Twenty-two medical students (12 females and 10 males) in three humanities small groups consented to participate. The authors used inductive thematic analysis to qualitatively analyze the text from 13weeks of curriculum. Findings indicate that students reflect about negotiating the clinician-patient relationship within the stressful environment characteristic of today's healthcare systems, that they worry about sacrificing their personal values in pursuit of honoring professional expectations, and that they encounter and commonly confront ambiguity. These themes were used to develop a descriptive framework of humanities small groups as a structure and safe space for the early development of professional identity.

TF-9 A Medical Humanities Curriculum for Emergency Medicine Residents

Humanities curricula for medical students have been shown to improve observation skills, empathy, wellness, and tolerance of uncertainty. Such attributes are all the more important in residency training; however, formal implementation and evaluation of similar curricula are lacking in graduate medical education (GME), especially in emergency medicine (EM). EM residency training demands excellent observation and communication skills, ability to practice patient-centered care, and development of skills to cope with stress and uncertainty; humanities curricula may therefore be of specific value for EM residents. This multimodal medical humanities curriculum incorporates themes relevant to EM and comprises museum visits, self-instructional modules, and classroom discussions. The goal of this curriculum is to use visual thinking strategies and narrative medicine to enhance resident observation and communication skills, patient-centeredness, empathy, and wellness. Upon curriculum completion, residents will improve their ability to 1) evaluate impact of personal biases and develop a patient-centered, empathetic approach, 2) demonstrate comfort with ambiguity, 3) make and communicate thoughtful and thorough observations, and 4) develop strategies to mitigate burn-out and address challenging situations. This longitudinal curriculum for EM residents in any year of training is to be implemented over 6 months during weekly protected conference time. In session 1, residents will be introduced to visual thinking strategies at a local museum and assigned a “portrait patient” to follow longitudinally during the curriculum. Three subsequent sessions will be small-group discussions using relevant extracts of novels, short stories, and nonfiction articles and residents’ written responses to the readings to focus on themes of 1) the patient experience, 2) medical conundrums and the art of diagnosis, and 3) the role of the physician in disaster settings. An additional classroom session on the clinical gaze and its correlations in visual arts will serve as a point of synthesis for prior sessions. The curriculum will conclude with a case study-based discussion of ethical dilemmas, which will permit residents to synthesize themes from previous sessions and practice consensus-building and communication skills. A pre- and post-course evaluation will use validated scales to assess curriculum impact on empathy (Jefferson Scale of Empathy), patient-centeredness (Patient-Practitioner Orientation Scale), tolerance of ambiguity (Tolerance of Ambiguity Scale) and burnout (Shirom-Melamed Burnout Measure). Residents will also provide written observations of a set of images, which will be scored for complexity and length. The post-survey will include an evaluation of resident satisfaction with the course and free-text response about potential strategies to mitigate burnout that they may have gleaned from this course. Residents’ ability to analyze, interpret, and communicate observations about visual and written data will be assessed via discussion participation and written responses to readings. If demonstrated to be feasible and if shown to have a positive impact on key resident attributes, this portable and adaptable curriculum could serve as a model not only for other EM residency programs, but for other GME specialties.

Medical Ethics Teaching Reform and Practice in Local Medical University of China

In the teaching reform of medical ethics in local medical university of China, several factors, including simplistic curriculum, large class teaching and the lack of humanistic quality among professional teachers significantly influence teaching outcomes. But the new teaching idea that targets clinical application in primary hospitals through the way that teaching practice fits into educational goals has been more and more acceptable. Combined with the teaching reform and practice in Xi’an Medical University, the establishment of medical humanities curriculum system with the reform of medical ethics course as the driving force and the foundation can promote the innovation of medical ethics teaching contents, teaching methods and assessment and improve the professional teachers’ humanistic quality so as play the role of medical ethics course in promoting the development of medical students' professional quality.

Six domains to develop critical medical humanities.

The Clinical TeacherVolume 15, Issue 2 p. 93-97 The Clinical Teacher's Toolbox Six domains to develop critical medical humanities Harry Yi-Jui Wu, Corresponding Author Harry Yi-Jui Wu hyjw@hku.hk Medical Ethics and Humanities Unit, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Bau Institute of Medical and Health Sciences Education, The University of Hong Kong, Hong KongCorresponding author's contact details: Harry Yi-Jui Wu, Medical Ethics and Humanities Unit, The University of Hong Kong, A5-11, William MK Mong Block, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, 21 Sassoon Road, Hong Kong. E-mail: hyjw@hku.hkSearch for more papers by this author Harry Yi-Jui Wu, Corresponding Author Harry Yi-Jui Wu hyjw@hku.hk Medical Ethics and Humanities Unit, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Bau Institute of Medical and Health Sciences Education, The University of Hong Kong, Hong KongCorresponding author's contact details: Harry Yi-Jui Wu, Medical Ethics and Humanities Unit, The University of Hong Kong, A5-11, William MK Mong Block, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, 21 Sassoon Road, Hong Kong. E-mail: hyjw@hku.hkSearch for more papers by this author First published: 10 October 2017 https://doi.org/10.1111/tct.12713Citations: 1 Editor's note: There is a growing literature on medical humanities and their incorporation into health professional education curricula. This toolbox article focuses on ‘critical medical humanities’ designed to stimulate deeper thinking and reflection. The author is a medical historian and he uses an example from his own teaching to highlight some of the learning opportunities afforded in this area. The six domains described fall under the headings of identity, gaze, stories, context, citizenship and uncertainty. Although the film that is the vehicle for the discussion may not be known to all of our readers, its themes should resonate with clinical educators. There are many examples of media that may be used to stimulate reflection about patient–professional relationships, the meaning of illness and the uncertainty of clinical practice. We think this is an unusual paper from an interesting perspective, and hope that it stimulates readers to discover more about the humanities and their application to health care. Funding: None. Conflict of interest: None. Acknowledgements: The author would like to thank all of the teachers who contributed to the design of the medical humanities curriculum. Ethical approval: This study does not require ethical approval. Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Citing Literature Volume15, Issue2April 2018Pages 93-97 RelatedInformation

Medical Humanities Coursework Is Associated with Greater Measured Empathy in Medical Students

PurposeThe primary focus of the study was to determine whether coursework in the medical humanities would ameliorate students' loss of and failure to develop empathy, a problem known to be common during medical education. MethodsStudents were offered an elective course in the Medical Humanities for academic credit. The Jefferson Scale of Empathy Student Version (JSE-S) was administered at the beginning and end of an academic year in which humanities courses were offered. Changes in JSE-S scores among students who studied Medical Humanities were compared with changes in student who did not take any humanities coursework. ResultsMedical humanities coursework correlated with superior empathy outcomes among the medical students. Of students not enrolled in humanities courses, 71% declined or failed to increase in JSE-S score over the academic year. Of those who took humanities coursework, 46% declined or failed to increase in JSE-S scores. The difference was statistically significant (P = .03). The medical humanities curriculum correlated with favorable empathy outcomes as measured by the JSE-S. ConclusionsElective medical humanities coursework correlated with improved empathy score outcomes in a group of US medical students. This may reflect a direct effect of the humanities coursework. Alternately, students' elective choice to take medical humanities coursework may be a marker for students with a propensity to favorable empathy outcomes.

The Development of a Theoretical Model of Integrated Medical Humanity Curriculum Using Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics Model

The purpose of this study was to propose a theoretical model for an integrated medical humanities curriculum based on a STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics) education framework and to provide a guideline for curriculum integration. Three dimensions of integrated curriculum development are competencies, core contents, and elements of integration. Competencies imply the purpose of the medical humanities of a medical school and the exit outcomes of the curriculum. Core contents imply the goals and objectives of the curriculum. We compared the goals and themes of the medical humanities with core attributes of professionalism. Four elements of integration were proposed: units (cases, problem activities, core contents, disciplines/subjects), types (multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary, transdisciplinary), contexts of integration (life cycle of patients, scope of society), and stages of student development (from student to doctor). It is expected that this theoretical model for an integrated medical humanities curriculum can be used as a guideline for curriculum development and an evaluation criterion for instructional designers and subject matter experts.

Narrative learning in the virtual landscape: a model from a baccalaureate program.

This article explores the implications of presenting a medical humanities curriculum in a virtual format, using as a model a fully online humanities course taught in both traditional 15-week and accelerated 5-week formats. The course explores narrative competency and allows baccalaureate students to deepen their practical skills with increased awareness of narrative constructions. The online course design fosters growth in many areas of communication that have otherwise been absent in face-to-face courses taught by this educator. In the virtual format, students showed increased investment in the course content and an openness to communicating their experience as well as to critically challenging their colleagues on narrative-based dilemmas, such as those centered around building empathy, remaining nonjudgmental when challenged with ethical dilemmas, and awareness of signs within themselves of disengagement and burnout.

Students' perspectives about the medical humanities curriculum at the Catholic University of Korea

Objectives: This paper presents the results of a qualitative study aimed at elucidating how well the goals of the OMNIBUS curriculum implemented in Korea as a medical humanities curriculum were achieved, from the student perspective. Methods: We conducted a qualitative study to elicit perspectives of students who participated in all 12 weeks of the OMNIBUS curriculum. Eighteen fourth-year medical students participated in two focus group interviews. Openended questions were prepared to guide the interviews. The interviews were audio-taped and transcribed. All data from the interviews were analyzed, using an inductive approach to identify themes. Results: The main themes were “characteristics of a good doctor”, “various careers in medicine”, and “the need for changes in assessment methods”. Seven subthemes that emerged were specifically related to “characteristics of a good doctor”, including “variety of perspectives on the human condition”, “feel empathy with patients from diverse backgrounds”, “communicate effectively with patients”, “clarify values”, “roles as a leader in society”, “give back to the community”, and “satisfaction of being physicians and importance of physician self-care”. Conclusion: The themes identified in this study demonstrated that the OMNIBUS curriculum achieved its goals, from the student perspective. In the interviews, students also identified other strengths and areas for improvement of the curriculum.

Medical humanities in the undergraduate medical curriculum

The medical humanities have been introduced in medical curricula over the past 30 years in the western world. Having medical humanities in a medical school curriculum can nurture positive attitudes in the regular work of a clinician and contribute equally to personality development. Though substantial evidence in favour of a medical humanities curriculum may be lacking, the feedback is positive. It is recommended that medical humanities be introduced into the curriculum of every medical school with the purpose of improving the quality of healthcare, and the attitudes of medical graduates.