STUDI DI SOCIOLOGIA - SPECIAL ISSUE. Comprendere la cura della salute attraverso le Medical Humanities: scenari attuali e prospettive future

Presentazione by Atuori Vari is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Editoriale by Guido Giarelli is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

In the international arena, there is a broad debate about the importance of including Medical Humanities in the education of health professionals. On the one hand a large part of the available literature highlights the several benefits  of the impact of these disciplines on the competence and skills of doctors and other health professionals, which are deemed useful in improving their care practices. On the other hand, some scholars complain that these studies are  not rigorous enough, and that the evidence they provide is fragmented and limited. This article, based on a narrative review, gives an account of this debate, highlighting the different theoretical-epistemological approaches 
that support the discussion, the methodological weaknesses and the main findings of the studies. In the conclusion, some suggestions for future research are provided and it is recommended that an integrative approach be adopted,  both from a theoretical-epistemological and a methodological point of view: this will make it possible to assess the outcomes of Medical Humanities for health professionals and care practices.

L’impatto delle Medical Humanities nella formazione delle professioni sanitarie e nelle pratiche di cura. Una revisione narrativa by Linda Lombi, Lia Lombardi is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

The article shows that 92% of the 679 healthcare degree courses offer at least 1 academic credit in Medical Humanities (MH), a sign of the rising importance of these disciplines in Italy. However, the presence and quantity of credits  offered are influenced by structural, territorial, and disciplinary variables, leading to a heterogeneous distribution of MH credits, a lack of Human Sciences, a poor representation of Arts, and a widespread absence of sociology in the  medical schools. A virtuous cluster oriented towards sociology has been identified through Artificial Intelligence unsupervised algorithm (t-SNE), indicating possible paths for improvement. A critical reflection underlines the  importance of multifactorial strategies, greater uniformity, and the need to evaluate the actual impact of the MH on medical and healthcare training and professions.

Le Medical Humanities nei 679 Corsi medico-sanitari Italiani: Criticità e Progressi by Monica Murero, Alessandro Porrovecchio is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

This article presents the results of an exploratory study designed to investigate the experiences of medical students who attended comics-based courses during their education. Seventeen in-depth interviews were conducted with  U.S. and Canadian male and female students who had completed at least one course in the five years prior to the interview. The objective of the study was to understand the potential impact of the use of graphic narratives on the  development of clinical empathy toward future patients and on the awareness of the different perspectives that characterize the illness experience. The thematic analysis of the interviews revealed that graphic tools mainly affected  he formation of professional identity, understood as personal and collective identity. The comic strips seem to be useful in developing students’ critical thinking toward their training, the health care system more generally, and in processing the complex emotions associated with the transition to the future professional role.

Medicina creativa: il ruolo dei fumetti nei corsi di laurea in Medicina by Veronica Moretti, Alice Scavarda, Michael J. Green is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

In 2021 the Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine piloted a new Humanities curriculum for entering medical students. The new curriculum permeates the pre-clerkship phase of medical education and focuses on social  justice and humanities concepts and skills. This paper outlines the iterative, collaborative curricular development process and describes three new courses and one redesigned course. Coursework includes foundational concepts and  frameworks, skill-building in visual thinking and interpretation, the reflexive development of humanistic practice, and a robust conceptual framework for clinical communication. Reflections on the outcomes of the new curriculum  include the productive role of theory in course development, challenges associated with deep discussion of difficult topics, and complexities associated with variable learner preparation in the humanities.

Reforming a Health Humanities curriculum: incorporating social justice into medical education by Rebecca L. Volpe, Justen Aprile, Amanda Cooper, Katharine B. Dalke, Kimberly R. Myers, Paul Haidet, Nancy Adams, Bernice L. Hausman is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Starting from the research “Religions in Hospitals: Integrating Spirituality and Medicine in Care Practices” (RESPIRO) (2019-2022) this article discusses applications and limitations of spiritual care in Italy. We aim to illustrate the  results of an analysis that was developed at different levels and, specifically, regarding: patients’ demand for spirituality and the provision of spiritual care introduced in some hospitals. In conclusion, we develop some reflections on  the contribution that sociology can add to the issue of spiritual care and the medical humanities, offering some suggestions for future lines of research and emphasizing the importance of spiritual care training for the medical and health professions.

L’assistenza spirituale nella cura: applicazioni e limiti by Matteo Di Placido, Stefania Palmisano is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

The paper explores the connection between Medical Humanities (MHs) and the One Health approach. The goal is to propose innovative programs for training health professionals that emphasise the interaction between MHs and One  Health. This crossing can be created with relations between the two disciplines, supporting the holistic health dimension, focusing on the person rather than exclusively on the disease. Integrating these elements makes it possible to  comprehensively improve the understanding of health and well-being. The One Health approach proposed here aims to enhance the construction of social actions, specifically health, and the interrelationship between disciplinary  knowledge in academic training.

Le Medical Humanities e l’approccio One Health by Alessandra Sannella is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0