Toward a More Humanistic American Medical Profession: An Analysis of Premedical Web Sites From Ohio’s Undergraduate Institutions

In response to changes in health care, American medical schools are transforming their curricula to cultivate empathy, promote professionalism, and increase cultural competency. Many scholars argue that an infusion of the humanities in premedical and medical training may help achieve these ends. Thi...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Daniel Skinner, Kyle Rosenberger
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: SAGE Publishing 2018-02-01
Series:Journal of Medical Education and Curricular Development
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1177/2382120518756337
Description
Summary:In response to changes in health care, American medical schools are transforming their curricula to cultivate empathy, promote professionalism, and increase cultural competency. Many scholars argue that an infusion of the humanities in premedical and medical training may help achieve these ends. This study analyzes Web-based messaging of Ohio’s undergraduate institutions to assess premedical advising attitudes toward humanities-based coursework and majors. Results suggest that although many institutions acknowledge the humanities, most steer students toward science majors; strong advocates of the humanities tend to have religious or other special commitments, and instead of acknowledging the intrinsic value that the humanities might have for future physicians, most institutions promote the humanities because entrance exams now contain related material.
ISSN:2382-1205