Like many institutions in the forefront of medical education, the
University of Florida College of Medicine expanded its efforts to
ensure that medical practice—while pushing the frontiers of
scientific knowledge—retains its roots in empathy and compassionate
care. Among the elective courses for medical students that help to foster empathy and physician self-care is a reflective writing course designed and taught by Dr. Gail Ellison who works to create a supportive community of students who write and discuss in a comfortable setting, reflecting
on the humanistic side of medicine, and discussing such issues as
authenticity, death, revulsion, and ideals that are sometimes obscured
by depersonalized coursework.
In early gatherings in the new Maren Reading Room, students expressed
interest in writing as a way to capture, detail, and understand the
concerns, reactions, and memories that arise in their interactions
with patients and staff. Students see reflective writing as a way
to actively engage in maintaining their own humanity, creativity,
and emotional well-being. In particular, reflective writing courses
such as that designed by Dr. Stephanie Cooper, facilitate, in her
words:
- Enhancement of students’ narrative capacity and skills
for understanding and empathy. These skills allow the students to
better hear and thus better heal the patient by inspiring patient-centered
decision making.
- Imbuing the students with listening and communication skills to
improve their ability to more accurately render the patient’s
story, and thus provide better patient care.
- Enhancement of the students’ self-awareness amidst the rigors
of medical school. Because each student’s personal stories
affect their patient care, analyzing and processing personal values,
biases, and views can lead to increased diagnostic ability and increased
capacity for compassion.
- Allowing students to bridge, as they build, their narrative and
clinical skills.
- Provide a more intimate setting than a lecture hall to allow students
and practitioners to discuss freely the challenges of becoming and
being a physician in the 21st century
