Forming Physicians: Evaluating the Opportunities and Benefits of Structured Integration of Humanities and Ethics into Medical Education.

This paper offers a novel, qualitative approach to evaluating the outcomes of integrating humanities and ethics into a newly revised pre-clerkship medical education curriculum. The authors set out to evaluate medical students' perceptions, learning outcomes, and growth in identity development. Led by a team of interdisciplinary scholars, this qualitative project examines multiple sources of student experience and perception data, including student essays, end-of-year surveys, and semi-structured interviews with students. Data were analyzed using deductive and inductive processes to identify key categories and recurring themes. Results suggest that students not only engaged with the curricular content and met the stated learning objectives but also acknowledged their experience in the humanities and ethics curriculum as an opportunity to reflect, expand their perceptions of medicine (and what it means to be "in" medicine), connect with their classmates, and further cultivate their personal and professional identities. Results of this qualitative study show how and in what ways the ethics and humanities curriculum motivates students past surface-level memorization of factual knowledge and encourages thoughtful analysis and evaluation about how the course material relates to and influences their thinking and how they see themselves as future doctors. The comprehensive qualitative approach reflects a holistic model for evaluating the integration of humanities and ethics into the pre-clerkship medical education curriculum. Future research should examine if this approach provides a protective factor against the demonstrated ethical erosion and empathy decrease during clinical training.

'I was lost in my life and they helped me find my way again': Befriendee and befriender experiences of the Spirasi Befriending Programme for survivors of torture in Ireland.

INTRODUCTION: Befriending is one of the rehabilitative services embedded in the holistic approach adopted by Spirasi, the Irish National Centre for the Rehabilitation of Survivors of Torture. Their befriending programme offers survivors one-to-one companionship from trained volunteer befrienders. The literature suggests that befriending programmes can improve quality of life, provide emotional support and combat loneliness. However, there is little empirical research of the effectiveness of befriending programmes for torture survivors. OBJECTIVE: The main objective was to explore, in complementary ways, the impact of the Spirasi befriending programme on befrienders and befriendees and to incorporate their voices into recommendations for optimising the service. METHODS: The methodology consisted of five focus groups (two with befriendees, two with befrienders and one with both) and a portrait workshop facilitated by two community artists, where each befriending pair member created a portrait of their partner to express and visually explore the befriending relationship. Data comprised the focus group transcripts and written feedback on the portrait-creation process. RESULTS: The themes identified in both data sets firmly ground the befriending programme in Spirasi's holistic approach to recovery. For the focus group participants, befriending promotes integration; models trusting, kind and reciprocal relationships; combats loneliness and protects against suicide. They also highlighted the importance of regular befriender training, increasing the programme's reach and developing a befriender community of practice. The portrait workshop was found to strengthen relationships and provide a context of normality, acceptance and shared humanity through compassionate and creative exchanges. CONCLUSIONS: This paper highlights the benefits of the befriending programme within Spirasi's holistic approach and the importance of collaborative expressive arts activities in building befriending relationships. It provides recommendations for good befriending practice which are relevant to all organisations working with survivors of torture as well as those working with people seeking international protection more broadly.

Comparison of Trait Creativity Between Medical Students and Humanities Students.

Background: Students play an important role in developing a country, and attention should be paid to encouraging and supporting students' creativity, especially in higher education. Objective: Creative training is an essential part of medical education and humanities education. The purpose of this study was to compare the trait creativity between students majoring in medicine and humanities. Methods: A cross-sectional online survey of students majoring in medicine and humanities was performed from July 20, 2022, to February 12, 2023. Trait creativity was assessed using the Williams Creativity Scale. Results: There were significant differences between female students and male students in the score of risk-taking (P < .05) and challenge scores (P < .05). No statistical difference was found for the score of trait creativity in four dimensions (imagination, challenging, risk-taking, and curiosity) between medical students and humanities students (P > .05). Conclusions: The study suggested that the overall trait creativity in medical students is equal to that of humanities students. However, gender differences in trait creativity still exist. Future studies should further identify more influential factors of trait creativity among university students.

Understanding the value of art prompts in an online narrative medicine workshop: an exploratory-descriptive focus group study.

Narrative medicine is an interdisciplinary field that complements and expands on conventional healthcare training by supporting narrative competence skills and creativity derived from the arts and humanities domains to address the needs of healthcare providers and receivers. With the COVID-19 pandemic having had a profound impact on the healthcare workforce with an already high burn-out rate, multimodal arts interventions may help address the holistic dimensions of well-being. While empirical evidence supports the use of arts-based interventions in promoting healthcare workers' well-being and personal growth, art prompts are underexplored and underused in narrative medicine. Moreover, protocols and frameworks adopted in extant research on this topic are inconsistent, resulting in replication and validation challenges. These issues have motivated this exploratory-descriptive study with 11 narrative medicine practitioners to examine the use of short art prompts in an online narrative medicine workshop.The art prompts leveraged art therapy's Expressive Therapies Continuum (ETC) model, which uses the inherent properties of art materials, media and methods to elicit specific levels of information processing and creative experiences. The study aimed to understand how art prompts differ from writing prompts and explore the value art prompts could add to narrative medicine if any. Qualitative analyses revealed that art prompts in narrative medicine increase positive feelings and promote creativity and insight. Specifically, art prompts allowed participants to use sensorimotor functions, enter a flow-like state, be challenged and inspired by novelty and uncertainty, and experience a sense of play and personal discovery.

A invenção de um setting on-line para atendimento psicológico remoto / The invention of an online environment for remote psychological care / La invención de un entorno en línea para la atención psicológica remota

Com o advento da covid-19, foi declarado estado de emergência de saúde pública e decretadas medidas de isolamento e distanciamento social para conter a propagação da doença. O Conselho Federal de Psicologia, considerando a importância do acolhimento seguro durante a pandemia, publicou a Resolução CFP nº 4/2020, permitindo que serviços psicológicos aconteçam de maneira remota. O presente estudo visa, através do Método da Cartografia, apresentar a construção de um setting on-line para intervenções grupais e os desafios na oferta de acolhimento e atendimento remoto. Foram ofertados grupos terapêuticos, por meio da plataforma Google Meet, para estudantes da Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro. Um diário de bordo foi produzido para acompanhar as forças que atravessavam e constituíam o território e a experiência grupal remota. Compreendemos que o território-espaço-grupal-on-line era composto pelo espaço virtual em que nos reuníamos, pelos espaços individuais de cada integrante e pelas forças que os atravessavam. Observamos que nem sempre os participantes dispunham de um lugar privado, mas estiveram presentes no encontro com câmeras e áudios abertos e/ou fechados e/ou através do chat da videochamada. A participação no grupo funcionou como alternativa no momento de distanciamento social, sendo uma possibilidade para o atendimento psicológico em situações de dificuldade de encontros presenciais; entretanto, se mostrou dificultada em diversos momentos, pela falta de equipamentos adequados e instabilidade na internet, fatores que interferiram nas reuniões e impactaram na possibilidade de falar e escutar o que era desejado.(AU)

With the advent of COVID-19, a state of public health was declared, and measures of isolation and social distance to contain the spread of the disease was decreed. The Federal Council of Psychology, considering the importance of safe reception during the pandemic, published CFP Resolution No. 4/2020, allowing psychological services to happen remotely. This study narrates, via the Cartography Method, the experience of inventing an Online Setting for group reception. Therapeutic groups were offered, via Google Meet Platform, to students at the Federal Rural University of Rio de Janeiro. A logbook was produced to accompany the forces that crossed and constituted the territory and the remote group experience. We understand that the territoryspace-group-online was composed by the virtual-space that we gathered, by the individualspaces of each member and by the forces that crossed them. We observed that the participants did not always have a private place, but they were present at the meeting with open and/or closed cameras and audio and/or through the video call chat. Participation in the group worked as an alternative at the time of social distancing, being a possibility for psychological care in situations of difficulty in face-to-face meetings, however, it proved to be difficult at various times, due to the lack of adequate equipment and instability on the internet, factors that interfered in meetings and impacted the possibility of speaking and listening to what was desired.(AU)

La llegada de la COVID-19 produjo un estado de emergencia de salud pública, en el que se decretaron medidas de confinamiento y distanciamiento físico para contener la propagación de la enfermedad. El Consejo Federal de Psicología, considerando la importancia de la acogida segura durante la pandemia, publicó la Resolución CFP nº 4/2020, por la que se permite la atención psicológica remota. Este estudio tiene por objetivo presentar, mediante el método de la Cartografía, la elaboración de un escenario en línea para la intervención grupal y los desafíos en la oferta de acogida y atención remota. Grupos terapéuticos se ofrecieron, en la plataforma Google Meet, a estudiantes de la Universidad Federal Rural de Río de Janeiro. Se elaboró un diario para acompañar a las fuerzas que atravesaron y constituyeron el territorio y la experiencia remota del grupo. Entendemos que el territorio-espacio-grupo-en línea estaba compuesto por el espacio-virtual que reunimos, por los espacios individuales de cada integrante y por las fuerzas que los atravesaban. Observamos que los participantes no siempre tenían un lugar privado y que estaban presentes en la reunión con cámaras y audio abiertos y/o cerrados y/o por el chat de la videollamada. La participación en el grupo funcionó como una alternativa en el momento del distanciamiento físico y revela ser una posibilidad de atención psicológica en situaciones de dificultad en los encuentros presenciales, sin embargo, se mostró difícil en varios momentos, ya sea por la falta de medios adecuados o por inestabilidad en Internet, factores que interferían en las reuniones e impactaban en la posibilidad de hablar y escuchar lo que se deseaba.(AU)

Modern Medicine: Ideas and Advances.

Considering the limitations of medical science and the risks associated with medical treatments, we need to re-examine the connotation of medical science from the perspective of philosophy. Medical science is the natural expression of human kindness and human nature of rescuing the dying and healing the wounded. It is a combination of the natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities. From the perspectives of medical philosophy and humanistic care, this article expounds the concepts and ideas of evidence-based, translational, and precision medicine in modern medicine and emphasizes the importance of avoiding new technical bureaucracy, paying attention to achieving a holistic view and systematic understanding, and avoiding biases in development because of the loss of the humanistic spirit in modern medical practice.

Evaluating Teaching Effectiveness of Medical Humanities in an Integrated Clerkship Program by a Novel Prospective Propensity Score Matching Framework.

BACKGROUND: This study aims to rigorously compare the effectiveness of the educational programs of a new integrated clinical clerkship in medicine (3 months) and surgery (3 months) at a cancer center with the conventional subspecialty-based rotations at a tertiary teaching hospital, by this prospective, pre-post comparative method. METHODS: Between 2013-2016, we compared 69 students who had selected the integrated clerkship that emphasized clinical competency and medical humanities training with 138 matched peers who had completed conventional clerkships during the same period. Outcome measures for medical humanities included empathy, patient-centeredness, and other values and skills related to holistic health care professionalism by introducing prospective propensity score matching (PSM). RESULTS: At baseline, no significant between-group differences existed. At the completion of the core clerkships, students receiving the integrative clerkship had significantly higher scores on the Patient-Practitioner Orientation Scale (PPOS) and the Professionalism Climate in Clinical Teaching Environment (PCI), and similar Jefferson Scale of Physician Empathy Student Version (JSPE) scores, as compared with the comparison group. We also found that the students in this program did not perform worse than those in the traditional internship group in the comprehensive and formative OSCE medical clinical skills test. CONCLUSIONS: Our study develops an empirical basis for rigorous evaluation to design medical education to improve the medical humanities values and skills of interns. Features of the new integrated clerkship program that we developed include substantial participation by the students in patient-centered in-hospital culture, as well as reflection, discussion, and feedback on actual clinical cases.

Health Humanities curriculum and evaluation in health professions education: a scoping review.

BACKGROUND: The articulation of learning goals, processes and outcomes related to health humanities teaching currently lacks comparability of curricula and outcomes, and requires synthesis to provide a basis for developing a curriculum and evaluation framework for health humanities teaching and learning. This scoping review sought to answer how and why the health humanities are used in health professions education. It also sought to explore how health humanities curricula are evaluated and whether the programme evaluation aligns with the desired learning outcomes. METHODS: A focused scoping review of qualitative and mixed-methods studies that included the influence of integrated health humanities curricula in pre-registration health professions education with programme evaluate of outcomes was completed. Studies of students not enrolled in a pre-registration course, with only ad-hoc health humanities learning experiences that were not assessed or evaluated were excluded. Four databases were searched (CINAHL), (ERIC), PubMed, and Medline. RESULTS: The search over a 5 year period, identified 8621 publications. Title and abstract screening, followed by full-text screening, resulted in 24 articles selected for inclusion. Learning outcomes, learning activities and evaluation data were extracted from each included publication. DISCUSSION: Reported health humanities curricula focused on developing students' capacity for perspective, reflexivity, self- reflection and person-centred approaches to communication. However, the learning outcomes were not consistently described, identifying a limited capacity to compare health humanities curricula across programmes. A set of clearly stated generic capabilities or outcomes from learning in health humanities would be a helpful next step for benchmarking, clarification and comparison of evaluation strategy.

Early Dental Trade Card for a Dentist & Cupper.

Very few "Dentist AND Cupper" trade cards are known and this is the only illustrated one known to the authors. "Mr. Glissan, Dentist and Cupper, 147 Blackfriars Road, (London), Teeth extracted for the Poor Gratuitously." Above the text and in the center is a eight-sided brass boxed scarificator. Developed in the 18th century as a more humane and efficient instrument for bloodletting than lancets or fleams, scarificators had multiple blades that shot out with the press of a spring-loaded lever creating an instantaneous series of parallel cuts in the skin of the patient. After the cuts were made a warm glass cup (to create a vacuum) was applied to drain blood. Two of these cups are pictured on each side of the scarificator. A mandible to the left and a maxilla to the right are also pictured. An explanation of the ancient procedure of cupping can be accessed at: https://www.webmd.com/balance/guide/cupping-therapy#1 (accessed 30 October 2020). Mr. Glessan's offer of free extractions for the poor is not unknown but seldom found on early dentist's trade cards.

The physician healer track: educating the hearts and the minds of future physicians.

Calls to reform medical education recommend explicit training in professional identity formation to promote the development of humanistic, compassionate physicians. The authors report their experience offering The Physician Healer Track, a 500-contact-hour curricula integrated over 4 years, focusing on self-awareness, reflection, being-with-suffering, communication and professional identity development. The voluntary scholarly-concentration program comprises 4 years of monthly dinner meetings with faculty mentors, a two-month preceptorship in the first year, a one-month immersion course in MS4 and one elective. Training in mindfulness, cognitive behavioral therapy, nonviolent communication, motivational interviewing, spirituality in healthcare, wellness, equanimity, and 'being with suffering' is reinforced across all 4 years. Community building and reflection are integral to the training both in the monthly sessions and the immersion courses. Enrollment has grown from 26 students in the first year (11% of class) to a total of 258 students across our first 6 years (average of 20-26% of each class). Graduates in our first two cohorts of PHT have exceeded the numbers in the eight other scholarly concentrations offered at UTMB. Among students participating in the summer preceptorship, there has been less than 1% attrition. In serial assessments, students report continued growth in personal development, professional development, and the ability to empathize. Offering PHT has resulted in the growth of training for our medical residents, faculty, physical therapy students and the creation of a student healer association. Despite the demands on student's time, they are voluntarily participating in a challenging program of integrated training with the intention of keeping them connected to their humanity during the rigors of medical school training.

Controle de si e cuidado de si: uma reflexão sobre a ciência da nutrição / Self control and self care: a reflection on nutrition science

Introdução: a Ciência da Nutrição funda-se sob o paradigma médico cartesiano, baseado na visão biologicista, intervencionista e centrada no especialista. O nutricionista, em sua prática clínica atua de modo prescritivo, punitivo e, configura-se como maneiras de controlar o paciente. Percebe-se atualmente, outras formas de abordar o paciente, da relação entre especialistas e leigos e de praticar a Nutrição Clínica que interessam a esse estudo. Objetivo: esse artigo promoveu uma reflexão crítica de práticas atuais na nutrição clínica. Método: estudo conceitual realizado a partir de uma revisão bibliográfica com autores das áreas da Nutrição e Ciências Humanas e Sociais, com foco na teoria de Michel Foucault, em especial, nos seus conceitos de controle de si e cuidado de si. Resultados: os autores mobilizados alertam para uma crise nas abordagens prescritivas, intensificando a falta de adesão dos interagentes e resultados ineficazes. Entretanto, a atuação do Nutricionista tende a ter maior relevância, visto que as doenças crônicas não transmissíveis ligadas à alimentação aumentam vertiginosamente. Nesse cenário, há diversos fatores que contribuem para a manutenção dessa crise como: a mídia, a cultura da dieta, o sistema agroalimentar e as políticas que atuam como mecanismos de poder e controle. Conclusão: Existem modelos alternativos ao paradigma hegemônico que estabelecem uma relação baseada no cuidado e se fundamentam em princípios como: autonomia, respeito às individualidades e subjetividades e ao papel ativo do interagente, ao profissional cabe ser o facilitador do processo. É imprescindível o desenvolvimento de habilidades e competências humanas não contempladas nos cursos de graduação. (AU)

Introduction: Nutrition Science is based on the Cartesian medical paradigm, based on the biologicist, interventionist and specialist-centered vision. The nutritionist, in his clinical practice, acts in a prescriptive, punitive way and is configured as ways to control the patient. Currently, there are other ways of approaching the patient, of the relationship between specialists and lay people and of practicing Clinical Nutrition that are of interest to this study. Objective: this article promoted a critical reflection of current practices in clinical nutrition. Method: conceptual study based on a bibliographic review with authors from the areas of Nutrition and Human and Social Sciences, focusing on Michel Foucault's theory, especially on his concepts of self-control and self-care. Results: the mobilized authors warn of a crisis in prescriptive approaches, intensifying the lack of adherence by interactants and ineffective results. However, the performance of the Nutritionist tends to be more relevant, since chronic non-communicable diseases linked to food increase dramatically. In this scenario, there are several factors that contribute to the maintenance of this crisis, such as: the media, the culture of the diet, the agri-food system and the policies that act as mechanisms of power and control. Conclusion: There are alternative models to the hegemonic paradigm that establish a relationship based on care and are based on principles such as: autonomy, respect for individualities and subjectivities and the active role of the interactant, the professional should be the facilitator of the process. It is essential to develop human skills and competences not covered in undergraduate courses. (AU)

From Turnip to Onion: Humanities, Curiosities, and Anecdotes of Hallux Valgus.

BACKGROUND: We sought to highlight the humanistic aspect of hallux valgus. METHODS: We conducted a bibliographic search between 2013 and 2017 of scientific, historic, and humanistic articles, in search of the anthropological dimension of hallux valgus. Museums and works of art by relevant painters were analzyed for the presence of hallux valgus. RESULTS: We showcase the linguistic origin of the terms related to hallux valgus, the evolution of its incidence depending on the footwear and social habits throughout history, the presence of hallux valgus in the work of great painters, and some other curiosities of this pathology. CONCLUSIONS: The knowledge of the humanistic aspect of pathologies we treat, if not imperative for its proper surgical resolution, can help to improve the understanding of them.

Trend and Prospect of Study on Chinese Medical History - Diversification of the Study on Medical History Study Through Integration and Communication.

This study has focused on studying Chinese medical history for the past 10 years (2010-2019). There has been no overall introduction to how the study of Chinese medical history has been carried out so far in Korea. To understand the trend for the recent 10 years, understanding of the period before that is needed. This study had classified the study trend of Chinese medical history from the 1950s when the study of Chinese medical history started in full swing until the last 10 years into the following three periods: First period: internal study period on Chinese medical history (the 1950s-1980s) Second period: external study period on Chinese medical history (the 1980s-1990s) Third period: diverse study period on Chinese medical history through integration and communication (2010-2019) There can be an opinion that various studies by each period have not been adequately reflected, and the classification has been excessively simplified. For example, the internal study has been considerably performed in the second period, and the consciousness of conflict between the internal study and external study remains in the third period. Nonetheless, the keywords that connote each period's characteristics for the past 70 years are considered the keywords presented above. The study of Chinese medical history has mainly placed importance on the modern times. Indeed, no change has been present as well. However, the fact that the study on the Chinese pre-modern medical history in Korean academia for the past 10 years has quantitatively grown from just a comparison of the number of papers can be identified. Also, the researchers and study themes have been confirmed to be diversified. In the past, ancient Chinese medicine was understood as a connection between Taoism and medicine. The environmental history researchers dealt with the connection between natural disasters and diseases, and just a few studies in the fields of medicinal herb distribution and the viewpoint of the body were carried out. Meanwhile, studies from the pre-Qin Dynasty to the Han Dynasty were carried out based on new data such as the archaeological relics and bamboo and wooden slips in the Korean academia for the past 10 years. Discovering new data is undoubtedly a driving force to activate studies. Studies on the Tang Dynasty Medical System and laws based on 'Chunsungryeong' are significant achievements connecting the Qin Dynasty & Han Dynasty and the Song Dynasty & Yuan Dynasty. Identification of each period's medical system in medical history is the most essential thing, and the combination of environment and medical history is conducted. It is significant to examine medical history from the viewpoint of the academic disciplines' integration. Approaching medical history from the female viewpoint has already started in the U.S., Europe, and Taiwan, and it is nice that such a study has been conducted in Korean academia. There are not many researchers on Chinese medical history in Korean academia. As several researchers have led the study, the study's concentration on specific periods or specific themes cannot be denied. The integration of systematic research achievements from the pre-Qin Dynasty until the Qing Dynasty is still minimal. Specifically, the study on pre-modern medical history targets a more extensive period than the study on modern medical history; therefore, researchers' density is low. This is why the possibility of intersection is not high in the period, region, and theme between researchers. This can be the source of an evaluation that study on medical history chain is sparse. It is wistful that the study continuity or systematic research is lacking. To overcome such a limitation, existing researchers need to conduct collaborative joint planning and research centered on particular themes through cooperation. They need to complement the study's sparse part in medical history through multidisciplinary co-research. Beyond the research centered on country study history, attempts to understand history as global history are being carried out. Studies on the exchange and interrelations between Western medicine and Chinese medicine have been performed in Chinese medical history. Nonetheless, studies on the exchange and interrelations of medical knowledge, medical systems, medicinal herbs, medical books, medical workforce, and diseases (epidemics) from global history are insufficient. Studies on a medical history that started from Chinese science and technology development history in the 1950s are developing to discuss one theme diversely. Plenty of studies on Chinese medical history need to be performed in various fields, including environmental history, the history of women, archeology, humanities, humanities therapy, integrated medical humanities, medical literature, medical theory, and medical system, which are the traditional fields.

Integrating Medical Humanities into medical school training.

Medical teaching must include new knowledge and technologies and how these affect patient care. The Medical Humanities can contribute to a more holistic and caring view of health and disease.

The meaning of the name of 'pulmonary rehabilitation' and its influence on engagement with individuals with chronic lung disease.

Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) is recommended for all individuals living with a lung condition and chronic breathlessness. This article considers how adopting an interdisciplinary, medical humanities approach to the term 'pulmonary rehabilitation' might unpack some of the misconceptions, misrepresentations or negative connotations surrounding it, which have been largely overlooked in explanations of the low uptake of this programme. Taking key insights from Wellcome Trust-funded Life of Breath project, including ethnographic research in community fitness groups in North East England and the 'Breath Lab' special interest group, this article outlines how the whole-body approach of PR is not easily understood by those with lung conditions; how experience can inform breath perception through the pacing of everyday life; and how stigma can impact rehabilitation. This article highlights the value of medical humanities in working through communicative challenges evident in the translation of PR between patient and clinical contexts and sets out two arts-based approaches (Singing for Lung Health and dance movement) as potential options that could be included in the PR referral. Finally, the article outlines the need for collaborative research exploring the communication and meaning of healthcare strategies and experiences at the interface of the arts, humanities and medical practice.

Towards a strategic research agenda for social sciences and humanities in radiological protection.

Reflecting a change in funding strategies for European research projects, and a commitment to the idea of responsible research and innovation in radiological protection (RP), a collective of research institutes and universities have developed a prospective Strategic Research Agenda (SRA) for Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) in radiological protection. This is the first time such a research agenda has been proposed. This paper identifies six research lines of interest and concern: (1) Effects of social, psychological and economic aspects on RP behaviour; (2) Holistic approaches to the governance of radiological risks; (3) Responsible research and innovation in RP; (4) Stakeholder engagement and participatory processes in RP research, development, policy and practice; (5) Risk communication; and (6) RP cultures. These topics were developed through broad stakeholder consultation, in conjunction with activities carried out in the framework of various projects and initiatives (EU H2020 CONCERT programme, the EU FP7 projects OPERRA, PREPARE and EAGLE, the 2015-2018 RICOMET series of conferences, and the 2014 and 2016 International Symposia on Ethics of Environmental Health); as well as through dialogues with members of the European radiation protection research communities. The six research lines open opportunities to integrate a range of key social and ethical considerations into RP, thereby expanding research opportunities and programmes and fostering collaborative approaches to research and innovation.

Medical themes in a literature classroom: An alternate perspective on Medical Humanities pedagogy in India.

This article examines the transferability of conversations in literary studies to a more sensitive, holistic, ethically informed, medical education. The article begins with a discussion of a class assignment on medical humanities in a literature course. The assignment enabled an immersive engagement with medical discourse by diverse students through different modes - through textual analysis, direct, and reflective encounters with communities of patients, caregivers, health professionals. The effort was to suggest that literature and medicine be studied as continuous shared strategies of reading and narrating lived experiences of health and illness. The insights of such learning should ideally be integral to the curriculum of medical students in India. Though the Medical Council of India's mandate for the humanities is inadequately sketched out, it nevertheless provides an opportunity to demand a larger citizenship and broader base of social sensitivity and knowledge for medical humanities.

Dancing Intercorporeality: A Health Humanities Perspective on Dance as a Healing Art.

As a contribution to the burgeoning field of health humanities, this paper seeks to explore the power of dance to mitigate human suffering and reacquaint us with what it means to be human through bringing the embodied practice of dance into dialogue with the work of the French philosopher Maurice Merleau-Ponty. Merleau-Ponty's conceptualisation of subjectivity as embodied and of intersubjectivity as intercorporeality frees us from many of the constraints of Cartesian thinking and opens up a new way of thinking about how dance functions as a healing art through its ability to ground and reconnect us with self, world, and others--with our humanity. It is argued that through a Merleau-Pontian framework, we can come to appreciate the true potential of dance as a positive and deeply humanising experience, demonstrating how expressive arts practice understood through the lens of philosophical theory can open up new dimensions of understanding and experience in relation to well-being and self- (and other-) care.