Humanities and Medical Majors

Medicine is not about following strict, laid out procedures anymore. This field has developed innovative ways to incorporate humanistic skills in its practices, like the use of narrative medicine to treat different dimensions of a patient’s needs.

Albert, Dan. “Ten Important Reasons to Include the Humanities in Your Preparation for a Scientific Career.” Science, 12 May 2011. Accessed 29 June. 2018.
Albert details multiple reasons for why humanities studies are important in science because they rely on each other.

Chen, Pauline W. “Stories in the Service of Making a Better Doctor.” The New York Times, 23 Oct. 2008. Accessed 7 July. 2018.
The use of narrative medicine, the idea of physicians reading stories/narratives/poems to enhance their practice, instills empathy and sensitivity in doctors which greatly improves patient care.

Mann, Sarah. “Focusing on Arts, Humanities to Develop Well-Rounded Physicians.” AAMCNews, Association of American Medical Colleges, 15 Aug 2017.  Accessed 4 July 2018.
The prevalence of medical schools incorporating the humanities into its studies is highlighted. Students learn the importance of history, observation, communication, and empathy.

Pugh, Rachel. “Art and Literature Could Make Doctors More Competent and Humane.” The Guardian, 19 Nov. 2013. Accessed 7 July. 2018.
Courses in the arts/humanities allow medical students to work with their patients in more efficient and understanding ways rather than through a lens of strict medical definitions.

Ramai, Daryl, and Shoshanna Goldin. “Humanities in Medicine: Preparing for Practice.” Perspectives on Medical Education, vol. 2, no. 5-6, 4 Oct 2013, pp. 332–334. PMC. Accessed 29 June 2018.
The humanities enable students going into medicine to develop communication with others and enabling expression of feelings.

Shapiro, Johanna, et al. “Medical Professionalism: What the Study of Literature Can Contribute to the Conversation.” Philosophy, Ethics, and Humanities in Medicine: PEHM, U.S. National Library of Medicine, 27 June 2015. Accessed 7 July 2018.
Studying literature helps medical professionals actually become professionals by fostering empathy and communication skills rather than following a definition of what professionalism is.