New program incorporates humanities
into medical curriculum

By Darla Brown

Building upon these sage words written by Canadian physician Sir William Osler nearly a century ago, the John P. McGovern, M.D. Center for Health, Humanities, and the Human Spirit has created a formal certificate program for medical students who are interested in studying and applying humanism into their medical education.

Open to all UT medical students, the innovative four-year program is an enriched course of study, involving writing workshops, community outreach programs, directed research, electives, and a seminar series culminating in the title of McGovern Scholar.

The program was launched in February by Bryant Boutwell, Dr.P.H., the John P. McGovern, M.D., Professor of Oslerian Medicine.

“The McGovern Center and this certificate program were born out of a commitment to enrich the lives and the capacity of our future physicians who must live the calling of medicine – treating the whole patient, not just the disease. Dr. McGovern would be very proud of our students and these programs that bring the art and the science of medicine together for the benefit of medical professionals and patients alike,” says Dr. Boutwell, the certificate program’s founding director.

Dr. McGovern endowed the center, which bears his name, in 2004 with a gift of $3.5 million to further the principles of Oslerian medicine. Dr. McGovern passed away May 31.

With the start of the new school year, the certificate program has generated much excitement – 19 first-year students have enrolled, joining 16 second-years, 14 third-years, and six fourth-year students. All students who want to participate may, thanks to an additional $2 million underwriting from the McGovern Foundation.

“This recent $2 million endowment from the McGovern Foundation is a living testament to the memory my friend, Dr. John P. McGovern. Dr. McGovern believed so strongly in medical students and the importance of the humanities in medicine,” Dr. Boutwell says.

“This program distinguishes the Medical School, and we are grateful for our continued support from the McGovern Foundation for its generosity,” says Thomas Cole, Ph.D., director of the center.

The new certificate program delves into the medical humanities, whose methods, according to Dr. Cole, include interpreting, valuing, and contextualizing and whose disciplines involve religion, history, philosophy, literature, and arts in medicine. McGovern Center faculty members specializing in these areas include Rabbi Samuel Karff and Alejandro Chaoul, Ph.D., focusing on spirituality in medicine; Eugene Boisaubin, M.D., heading up clinical ethics; and Rebecca Lunstroth, J.D., focusing on history and law.

Journal writing and a volunteer component as well as attending lunch and dinner lectures comprise the four-year program. The monthlong fourth-year elective, Humanistic Elements of Medicine, will pull together everything from the four-year program and will include participation from all faculty members.

Program director Cheryl Erwin, J.D., Ph.D., says student enthusiasm shows the need for such a program.

“These students want to be the best physicians they can be and treat the whole patient while maintaining an internal balance,” explains Dr. Erwin, who assumed the directorship when Dr. Boutwell took responsibilities as director of institutional accreditation – but he continues to teach with the McGovern Center.

David Fetzer, a fourth-year student in the program, says the certificate program allows students to create relationships between the community and their medical education as well as more personal connections.

“Each student starts medical school brimming with hope and enthusiasm and brings with them many interests outside of exams, lectures, and clinical duties,” Fetzer says. “Many are painters, singers, writers, volunteers, tutors, and so on; many students are looking for a way to connect their unique background and view to their studies and future career. The certificate program offers them that opportunity.”

Fetzer says he is thankful to the program for opening up new possibilities in medical education. “I enjoy the connections this program has allowed me to form, the viewpoints I have encountered and shared, the art and literature I have been exposed to, and the opportunity to grow, mature, and become a true physician,” he explains.

Students are eager to incorporate the humanities into the medical curriculum, says Dr. Erwin, adding that undergraduate students are already inquiring about the subject, saying this program is piquing their interest in the UT Medical School.

“This will be a great recruiting tool for the most humanistic students – there is nothing like it in the country,” Dr. Erwin says.

Upon graduation of the certificate program, a McGovern Scholars community will be created.

“We hope to create a community of humanistic physicians graduating with this certificate to support one another through compassionate care,” Dr. Erwin explains.