Medical Humanities and Bioethics

Overview

Medical humanities is an interdisciplinary program that explores the historical, literary, philosophical, ethical, and spiritual dimensions of medicine and health. It Includes instruction in the visual arts, social sciences, narrative medicine, cultural studies, and clinical practice. There is a common focus on creative and compassionate approaches to professional relationships and patient care.

Bioethics focuses on the ethical dimensions of medical practice and research. It includes instruction in applying philosophical ethics, policy analysis, and decision theory to real world issues in healthcare. Topics include end of life care, disability, resource allocation, organ transplantation, research on human and animal subjects, reproduction and fertility, health care justice, and other topics relevant to clinical practice.

Combining approaches from the medical humanities and bioethics, students are encouraged to take a humanistic perspective on the practice of medicine, using methods from philosophy, the social sciences, and the arts. This program provides students with an opportunity to earn a Certificate in Medical Humanities (12 hours) or a Minor in Medical Humanities and Bioethics (18 hours) and is relevant to a wide range of fields including healthcare, disability studies, public health, social work, and biomedical engineering.

Minor

The Minor in Medical Humanities and Bioethics requires 18 hours. There are three required courses: HUMA 3300, PHIL 3319, and the student's choice from the listed Disability Studies courses. This minor offers independent study and internship opportunities.

Required core courses (two courses)

HUMA 3300	MEDICAL HUMANITIES	3
PHIL 3319	BIOMEDICAL ETHICS	3

Required Disability Studies course (1 course)

DS 2301	TOPICS IN DISABILITY STUDIES	3
DS/HIST 3307	U.S. DISABILITY HISTORY	3
DS/HIST 3308	HISTORY OF MADNESS	3
DS 3312	DISABILITY & SOCIAL WORK	3
DS 3321	TOPICS IN DISABILITY STUDIES	3
DS/PHIL 3322	DISABILITY ETHICS	3
DS 3327/HIST 4327	CYBORGS AND PROSTHETICS	3
DS 3331	RESEARCH IN DISABILITY STUDIES	3
DS/COMM 3346	DISABILITY IN MASS MEDIA	3
DS/THEA 3355	UNIVERSAL DESIGN & ACCESSIBILITY IN THE PERFORMING ARTS	3
DS/ART 3399	DISABILITY AND ART	3
DS/HIST 4326	TOPICS IN DISABILITY HISTORY	3
DS 4329	DISABILITY & WORK	3
KINE 3304	ADAPTED PHYSICAL EDUCATION & SPORT	3

Elective courses (3 courses)

ANTH 2307	BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY	3
ANTH 2322	GLOBAL CULTURES	3
ANTH 3307	EVOLUTIONARY MEDICINE	3
ANTH 3316	LATINO HEALTH ISSUES	3
ANTH 3369	MEDICAL ANTHROPOLOGY	3
ANTH 4406	HUMAN OSTEOLOGY	4
ANTH 4459	BIOARCHAEOLOGY	4
ART 4304	ART AND THE HUMAN CONDITION	3
BIOL 4357	HEALTH PSYCHOLOGY	3
CRCJ 3370	INTRODUCTION TO FORENSICS	3
COMM 3350	HEALTH COMMUNICATION	3
CRCJ 4340	FORENSIC DEATH INVESTIGATION	3
DS 2301	TOPICS IN DISABILITY STUDIES	3
DS/HIST 3307	U.S. DISABILITY HISTORY	3
DS/HIST 3308	HISTORY OF MADNESS	3
DS 3312	DISABILITY & SOCIAL WORK	3
DS 3321	TOPICS IN DISABILITY STUDIES	3
DS/PHIL 3322	DISABILITY ETHICS	3
DS/HIST 3327	CYBORGS AND PROSTHETICS	3
DS 3331	RESEARCH IN DISABILITY STUDIES	3
DS/COMM 3346	DISABILITY IN MASS MEDIA	3
DS/THEA 3355	UNIVERSAL DESIGN & ACCESSIBILITY IN THE PERFORMING ARTS	3
DS 3399	DISABILITY AND ART	3
DS/HIST 4326	TOPICS IN DISABILITY HISTORY	3
DS 4329	DISABILITY & WORK	3
ENGL 3364	TOPICS IN LGBTQIA+ LITERATURE AND THEORY	3
FREN/MODL 4310	GRAPHIC NOVELS AND THE MEDICAL WORLD	3
GEOG 4330	UNDERSTANDING GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS	3
GWSS 2315	INTRODUCTION TO LGBTQ+ STUDIES	3
HIST 4307	HISTORY OF MEDICINE	3
HIST 4309	SOCIAL DARWINISM AND EUGENICS	3
HUMA 3340	TOPICS IN HUMANITIES	3
HUMA 3350	CLINICAL MEDICINE AND THE HUMAN EXPERIENCE	3
HUMA 3360	AMERICAN HEALTHCARE THROUGH FILM	3
HUMA 4391	CONFERENCE COURSE IN MEDICAL HUMANITIES	3
HUMA 4395	INTERNSHIP IN MEDICAL HUMANITIES	3
KINE 3304	ADAPTED PHYSICAL EDUCATION & SPORT	3
NURS 3347	SPECIALIZED TOPICS IN NURSING (When relevant and with permission of program coordinator)	3
PHIL 3340	TOPICS IN APPLIED ETHICS (When relevant and with permission of program coordinator.)	3
PHIL 3341	TOPICS IN BIOETHICS	3
PHIL 4392	CONFERENCE COURSE IN BIOETHICS	3
POLS 3309	HEALTH POLITICS, POLICY, AND ADVOCACY	3
POLS 4350	HEALTH POLITICS AND POLICY	3
PSYC 3303	DRUGS AND BEHAVIOR	3
SCIE 4301	ISSUES IN AMERICAN HEALTHCARE	3
SCIE 4303	CLINICAL MEDICINE AND THE HUMAN EXPERIENCE	3
SCIE 4304	DIAGNOSIS OF HUMAN DISEASE	3
SOCW 3315	INTRODUCTION TO SUBSTANCE USE DISORDERS	3
SPAN 3308	SPANISH FOR HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES	3
SPAN 4342	TRANSLATION IN HEALTHCARE SETTINGS	3
SPAN 4343	INTERPRETING IN HEALTHCARE SETTINGS	3
SOCI 3332	SOCIOLOGY OF REPRODUCTION	3
SOCI 4320	MEDICAL SOCIOLOGY	3
SOCW 4314	INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE	3
GWSS 3305	WOMEN'S HEALTH ISSUES	3
THEA 3351	ROBOTS, DIGITAL HUMANITIES, AND THEATRE	3

Other courses as approved by the program coordinator.

Certificate

To receive the certificate, a student must complete HUMA 3300 and three courses from the following list. Students can count toward the certificate no more than two courses from a single department. At least two courses must be from the College of Liberal Arts.