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Health & Medical Humanities, Minor

Program Overview

Health & Medical Humanities is an interdisciplinary field that uses humanistic perspectives to understand health and healthcare. The humanities have the potential to teach us about the embodied human experience, including suffering, healing, well-being, and flourishing. The Minor in Health & Medical Humanities complements the movement toward primary and patient-centered care in healthcare and provides an interdisciplinary approach to understanding the effects of health, wellness, and illness on patients, health professionals, and on the social worlds in which they live and work.  

The program explores the experience of illness, mortality, fragility, health, and healthcare settings through literature, the arts, and the social sciences. The minor supports the University’s health and medical-related programs by offering a cross-disciplinary approach that promises to enhance observation, empathy, communication, cultural understanding, human compassion and sensitivity, and creativity, among future healthcare providers. In short, the minor immerses students in the human side of medicine and health and leads to greater enhanced interpersonal relationships between patients and practitioners, supporting the concept of “person-centered medicine.” 

The Health & Medical Humanities minor is an 18-credit interdisciplinary minor engaged in the humanistic and cultural study of illness, health, healthcare, and the body. This program explores the experience of illness, mortality, fragility, health, and healthcare settings through literature, the arts, and the social sciences. This minor is also intended to enhance personal reflection, critical thinking skills, and understanding of health, illness, and medical care’s personal, social, historical, and cultural contexts.

Program Contact

Margaret M. Quinlan, Ph.D.

Professor, Communication Studies and Health & Medical Humanities Program Director

quinlan.margaret@charlotte.edu

Health & Medical Humanities, Minor at a Glance

The Minor in Health & Medical Humanities is built around a core sequence of interdisciplinary courses taught from various academic disciplines. This approach is designed to bring together information from multidisciplinary sources, integrate theoretical and applied concepts in Health & Medical Humanities, and communicate to students the need for an integrated approach to meeting the needs of all of us inside and outside healthcare.

Delivery
Online, On-Campus
Credit Hours
18 Credit Hours
Duration
Can typically be completed in three semesters, depending on your major curriculum.

Inside the Health & Medical Humanities Program at UNC Charlotte

Watch this video to discover how Health & Medical Humanities intersect with various aspects of our world, from healthcare and social services to policy and innovation. This video will also guide you through the exciting pathways available at UNC Charlotte, helping you take the first steps toward a rewarding career or deeper academic exploration in Health & Medical Humanities.

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