The Dr. Dennis J. Patterson
Center for the Health Professions

Medical Humanities Minor

The medical humanities minor is designed to serve as a basis for the development and understanding of the skills and attributes associated with humanistic health care delivery. The term "medical humanities" refers to a study of the aspects of health care delivery which include ethical considerations in the provider-client relationship, as well as the humanistic components essential to good health care delivery, such as effective communication, integrity, excellence, compassion, altruism, respect for clients and colleagues, empathy, and service. The minor is open to any student interested in the discourse between medicine, science, and care giving as a humane and humanistic art.

Objectives of the Minor

• To heighten in students an awareness and appreciation of the varied ways human beings create and struggle with meaning and purpose in their lives, especially as they face illness, adversity, suffering, and death.
• To engage students in a course of study (beyond the essential scientific information and clinical skills) that brings together academic, clinical, and service experiences which attend to the central concepts and practices in the medical humanities.
• To involve students in well-informed ethical decision making, improve their ability to interact with persons of different backgrounds and cultures, and provide them an active introduction to research and clinical experience.
• To expose students to diverse perspectives which scholars from many fields bring to complex questions involving health care and the health professions.

The following courses can contribute toward a minor in medical humanities:

Core Courses (four are required)

PHL 316 Ethical Aspects of Health Care or THL 332 Theology, Ethics, and Health Care

COM 114 Interpersonal Communication or COM 315 Intercultural Communication

MEH 490 Medical Humanities Clinical Experience

MEH 491 Medical Humanities Seminar/Research Capstone

Electives (three are required--from different disciplines)

ENG 221 The Search for Humane Values in Literature, ENG 230 Literary Responses to Race, Class, and Gender, or ENG 372 Multicultural/Postcolonial Literature

PHL/PSY 300 Neuroethics, PHL 305 Philosophy of Science or PHL 326 Key Themes and Thinkers in Medical Humanities

PSY/PHL 300 Neurothics or PSY 348 Health Psychology

SOC 216/316 Society, Health, and Illness

REL 331 Christian Ethics and Human Sexuality or REL 323 God and the Universe: Religion and Science

Electives must be selected from three different departments and no more than two can be counted toward general education credits as well as the minor. At least three of the minor courses must be taken at the 300/400 level. Further information is listed in the Elmhurst College course book including prerequisites to any courses. Students interested in the medical humanities minor can contact Dr. Frank Mittermeyer, Ph.D. (frankm@elmhurst.edu) or Dr. William Hirstein, Ph.D. (williamh@elmhurst.edu) to learn more.