Intended for M1s/M2s, open to all.

This course takes an interdisciplinary approach to understanding medicine, blending literature, storytelling, ethics, visual arts, and philosophy to explore the human side of healthcare. Through light reading, engaging discussions, creative and reflective writing, and other explorations, students will be supported in developing a deeper understanding of themselves in context of medicine and humanities. This seminar will enhance the ability to communicate effectively, refine critical thinking skills, examine medical training through multiple humanities disciplines, and learn to tell compelling stories.

Open to all

This 1-credit course provides an introduction to topics and themes that are central to bioethics and the humanities in the context of medicine. It prioritizes dialogue through weekly small-group discussion of an assigned reading and covers a range of topics, including ethical theory, different approaches to ethical reasoning (principles, virtues, consequences), clinical ethics, professionalism and humanism, moral agency, ethical pluralism, ethics in relation to cultural diversity and global health, historical examples of research abuses, technology and the future, narrative ethics, and the use of stories in medicine. Students are encouraged to discuss the real-world relevance of ideas by applying ethical insights to challenges in clinical care.

Open to M3s, M4s

The fundamental goal of the course is to provide students with experiences that will help them communicate more empathically with their patients, patients’ families, and other health care team members. The focus of this course is on using play to facilitate the practice of interpersonal communication. When this class includes performances of improvised scenes, its primary intent is always to raise students’ awareness that effective communication goes beyond a mere exchange of words or ideas. Students will learn to develop important listening skills and be attentive to visceral, physical, and intuitive aspects of non-verbal communication. They will also evaluate their own personal communication styles and gain tools to help them adjust in their professional and personal interactions. Class meetings will occur on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Open to M3s, M4s

This course will allow students to understand and practice the skill of writing Opinion Editorials aimed at improving the public’s understanding of health and healthcare. Students will learn how to effectively engage a broad, nonmedical audience through their writing, with the goal of producing an Opinion Editorial piece that could be submitted for publication to a local or national newspaper. This course will meet 2 times per week for 2.5 hours/session. The first four sessions of the course will be conducted in a seminar-style with a focus on discussion of the assigned readings. There will also be a brief time (10-15 minutes) allotted for writing. The second four sessions of the course will be conducted in a workshop format for the purposes of editing and receiving feedback on the students’ editorial pieces. During the workshop students will share their work and receive constructive critical feedback from the instructor and their peers. Outside of class, students will be responsible for critically reading all course material (approximately 10-15 hours per week), preparing one presentation (approximately 5 hours during the week they are assigned), completing writing assignments and discussion posts (approximately 15 hours per week), and meeting with a class partner to discuss each other’s work (approximately 3-5 hours per week).

Open to M3s, M4s

Students will review the history and purpose of medical oaths, compare medical oaths with professional codes, examine the content of medical oaths in terms of ethical principles and virtues, interview a nonmedical person regarding his/her assessment of ethical values considered important for a medical oath, and write a medical oath that crystalizes their own most important professional commitments.

Open to M3s, M4s

Sherlock Holmes and the Art of Diagnosis invites students to explore the diagnostic process through the lens of detective fiction and the medical humanities. Using literature, visual art, film, and patient narratives, the course examines observation, interpretation, and storytelling as essential components of clinical reasoning. Through discussion, reflective writing, creative inquiry, and collaborative problem-solving, students develop skills in close observation, narrative competence, and diagnostic humility while considering the ethical and human dimensions of medical decision-making

Open to M4s

Medicine is more than science—it is storytelling, ethics, and the art of human connection. This course invites students to explore the intersection of medicine and the humanities through literature, philosophy, and narrative medicine. Participants will engage in dynamic discussions, writing exercises, and interdisciplinary readings and conversations that sharpen their ability to communicate, reflect, and advocate for compassionate care. By critically engaging with key texts, exploring the ethical and philosophical dimensions of medicine, and applying these insights to real-world practice, students will cultivate the intellectual and emotional depth necessary for a truly holistic approach to healing. Through creative exercises and collaborative learning, this course will challenge students to see their role as physicians not just as healers, but as storytellers, humanists, and ethical decision-makers.

Open to M3s, M4s

The Balance Within explores the dynamic relationship between stress, memory, emotion, and physical health through the combined perspectives of science and the humanities. Drawing on Esther Sternberg's The Balance Within, alongside works in narrative medicine, philosophy, and creative nonfiction, students examine how biological, psychological, and social experiences shape health and illness. Through discussion, reflective writing, and interdisciplinary inquiry, the course fosters clinical imagination, attentive listening, and a deeper appreciation of the complex connections between mind, body, and meaning