Humanities for Third Years, George Washington University

The Other End of the Stethoscope “Literature not only illuminated another’s experience, it provided, I believed, the richest material for moral reflection” We all have a vision of what a doctor should be. And as you develop into that ideal, it is important to be frequently reminded of who you are, where you are, and how close you are to realizing that vision. But, sometimes that is difficult to do in medical school. Though standardized tests and memorization of triads teach you to think like a doctor, it is much harder to learn how to act like one.1-5 Perhaps discussing literature will be more effective than a science textbook here.5-8 Over our sessions, we aim to hone our skills of observation, first of our patients and then of ourselves, with a particular focus on discovering our feelings towards medicine and becoming better professionals.6-8 Who knew sharing feelings could make you a better doctor? This colloquium will use texts from physician authors as our guides to self-awareness: sometimes fiction, but often memoir or non-fiction.9 This is not a literature course nor is it creative writing, although both these disciplines can influence your own appreciation of our discussions.10 You do not have to have a background in the arts or humanities to participate as these tools will be taught just as we teach physical diagnostic maneuvers or clinical reasoning skills. Each seminar will rely on a reading from a physician that will serve as a thematic focus for that session’s discussion. Students will come to meetings with a written reaction to the reading and formulate discussion questions to share with the group.4 Our discussions will begin with moderator-led questions focusing on the author’s environment, the author’s attitude towards patients and medicine, and your reactions to these views based on your experience of patients, medicine, and society. Your own memoirs are welcomed but not required. Elective only. GWU also appears to offer a Medical Humanities Scholarly Concentration. For more information, see: https://ospe.smhs.gwu.edu/medical-humanities. This information has been collected for the Post-Discipline Online Syllabus Database. The database explores the use of literature by schools of professional education in North America. It forms part of a larger project titled Post-Discipline: Literature, Professionalism, and the Crisis of the Humanities, led by Dr Merve Emre with the assistance of Dr Hayley G. Toth. You can find more information about the project at https://postdiscipline.english.ox.ac.uk/. Data was collected and accurate in 2021/22.