Medical Humanities Minor

This interdisciplinary program explores the field of medicine and its connections to visual arts, film, literature, philosophy, theology, sociology, history, psychology, and related fields integral to the humanities.

A relatively new field of college study, medical humanities recognizes that ethics, compassion, empathy, and spirituality is needed to balance and keep pace with ever-growing scientific and technological advances in healthcare.

Why choose medical humanities at Marian?

Medical humanities is an excellent minor if you want a career in which you provide direct, hands-on patient care. It's also a good choice if working on the business or social service side of medicine and healthcare is your primary interest.

Throughout your studies, you will gain insight into how the human body, illness, and healthcare are understood across historical eras and cultures. You'll explore stories of the sick and those who care for them.

Coursework focuses on diverse understandings of health and medicine, like:

• Practices and theories that inform healthcare and medical decision-making, especially ethically informed decisions about healthcare treatments and options.
• Analytical, reflective discussion about the representation of illness, medicine, and the human body as it depicted or described across time and geography.
• Personal narratives of patients, families, and caregivers based on their unique experiences.
• The complex nature of illness, healthcare, and the body and methods of delivering inclusive, reciprocal, and accessible healthcare.

In short, you will examine the impact of the human interactions that are at the heart of the healthcare experience.

Upon completion, you'll be well-equipped to understand human health and healthcare in values-centered ways consistent with Franciscan traditions of social justice and spirituality.

What will you study?

To earn a minor in the medical humanities at Marian, you will complete 18 credits hours including:

• ENG 323 and PHL 325 or THL 316
• 12 additional credits at the 300-level in English, philosophy, psychology, sociology, and theology

You will explore topics like:

• Literary works and narratives describing illness and medical care, the human experience of sickness and treatment, and literary critical theory.
• Abnormal psychology/behavior and its causes, treatments, and prevention.
• Health psychology and empirically-based principles of stress management, lifestyle choice, healthcare ethics, coping with injury and treatment, pain management, and preventive intervention.
• Theories of personality, including human commonalities and differences, mind/body connections, hereditary and experiential influences, psychopathology, personality disorders, self-knowledge, interpersonal relationships. 
• Spirituality and sociology in health, illness, and healthcare treatments.
• Global health issues and interventions, including those focusing on women's health.
• Philosophical and theological bioethics, such as genetic testing, cloning and stem cell research, ethics and morality in treating the dying, and equitable distribution of healthcare.

What career paths are available?

As a minor in medical humanities, you can pair it with a degree that will lead you toward a career in which you work as a physician, nurse, occupational or physical therapist, exercise physiologist, psychologist, or licensed mental health counselor, for example.

An alternative is to pair the minor with a degree that prepares you to work in business, educational, social service, or research positions related to human health and healthcare. In this case, you might: 

• Work in hospital administration, health insurance management, pharmaceutical sales, or life sciences research.
• Manage or facilitate access to healthcare services for unique populations of people, like children, teens, adults, families, and the elderly.
• Serve as an advocate for human health and wellness in community, nonprofit, workplace, and other settings.
• Teach community health, promoting ways to maintain optimal personal health and prevent illness or injury.