Literature and Death, University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston (McGovern)

The same common fate awaits us all. Yet we rarely reflect on what death means for us or for others. This sub-elective will explore various books on death and dying in medical humanities. After this course students will be able to: • analyze various readings in medical humanities on death and dying; and • articulate how these readings can inform clinical practice. UTH, Houston (McGovern) also sponsors blue book, or extracurricular, electives each semester. These electives are designed to supplement and enrich the medical school’s curriculum, exposing students to a range of topics related to the humanities and ethics. Some electives are faculty-led; however, a growing number of these courses are designed by medical students who have identified topics of interest or gaps that can be addressed through the medical humanities. Relevant courses that use literature include: Introduction to Medical Humanities, Humanities in Dermatology, and Humanities in Film. For more information, see https://med.uth.edu/mcgovern/teaching/bluebook-electives/ 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.