{"title":"Hospital space interpreted according to Heidegger's concepts of care and dwelling.","authors":"Hye Youn Park","doi":"10.1136/medhum-2023-012696","DOIUrl":"10.1136/medhum-2023-012696","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Modern hospitals have succeeded in saving humans from numerous diseases owing to the rapid development of medical technology. However, modern medical science, combined with advanced technology, has developed a strong tendency to view human beings as mere targets of restoration and repair, with modern hospitals characterised as spaces centred on technology-focused treatment. This results in a situation where human beings are reduced to objects and alienated. This study, integrating Heidegger's concepts of <i>dwelling</i> and <i>care,</i> contends that 'care' is a vital concept in terms of the fundamental spatiality of hospitals and needs to be restored as the key guiding principle affecting hospital space. The loss of the caring spirit in the development of modern hospitals affects how hospitals are conceived, built and managed, as well as how human experiences within hospitals are dealt with or allowed for appropriately. This study offers critical reflection on how future planning of hospital spaces can be better conducted to ensure that human experiences, and the care needed to appropriately value such experiences, are adequately expressed, and the complexity of human existence is suitably considered.</p>","PeriodicalId":46435,"journal":{"name":"Medical Humanities","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2024-02-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"72015698","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"'It wasn't what I was suited for': regretful mothers negotiating their reproductive decision and mother role.","authors":"Maja Bodin","doi":"10.1136/medhum-2023-012717","DOIUrl":"10.1136/medhum-2023-012717","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This study contributes to our understanding of why women without a longing to have children and who, in theory, have the possibility of refraining from parenthood still become mothers. The article is based on in-depth interviews with six Swedish mothers who never longed to have children in the first place. It illustrates how they make sense of their reproductive decision-making process and their current role as a mother. The analysis shows how reproductive decision-making is highly influenced by cultural perceptions of proper womanhood and the idea that every woman has an innate longing to have children, as well as other people's wishes and pressure. Although the mothers did their best to align with motherhood expectations, their narratives show that they are still oriented towards non-motherhood on an emotional level. This manifests through their experiences of existential regret about having children. Hence, the mothers' understandings of their path to motherhood reveal a complex conflict between outer expectations and inner wishes, which destabilises the idea of reproduction as a promise of happiness.</p>","PeriodicalId":46435,"journal":{"name":"Medical Humanities","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2024-02-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136399668","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Turning good intentions into good outcomes: ethical dilemmas at a student-run clinic and a rubric for reflective action.","authors":"Nicholas Peoples, J Thomas Gebert, Dana Clark","doi":"10.1136/medhum-2023-012695","DOIUrl":"10.1136/medhum-2023-012695","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Student-run clinics represent a unique medical education and healthcare delivery model powered largely by good intentions. These good intentions may produce questionable results, however, when juxtaposed with intense academic pressure to fill one's curriculum vitae with personal achievements, leadership roles and peer-reviewed publications. It becomes a legitimate ethical question whether student-run clinics consistently and materially enrich the care of underserved communities, or merely inspire a litany of rushed, short-term and low-quality projects that sidestep patient welfare or even cause brazen harm. As co-directors of HOMES Clinic, a student-managed clinic which offers free health and social services to people experiencing housing insecurity, we routinely encounter such well-intentioned but ethically questionable proposals. Here, we present four short case studies that dissect apart some of these common yet suspect assumptions underpinning student-run clinics. We then conclude with a rubric for reflective, calibrated action.</p>","PeriodicalId":46435,"journal":{"name":"Medical Humanities","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2024-02-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10579865","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Dawn Garisch, Janet Giddy, Giles Griffin, Steve Reid
{"title":"Can 'life writing' be therapeutic in response to trauma? An exploratory research project in Medical Humanities in South Africa.","authors":"Dawn Garisch, Janet Giddy, Giles Griffin, Steve Reid","doi":"10.1136/medhum-2021-012368","DOIUrl":"10.1136/medhum-2021-012368","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The therapeutic benefit of expressive writing has been well researched in the Global North but there is no literature from the Global South. Potentially healing interventions need to be investigated in different contexts, particularly where there is a need to build social cohesion. South Africa has a violent past and is a highly stressed society. An exploration of self-reports by a diverse group of South Africans on the effects of life writing on their health and well-being was conducted using qualitative methods. Twenty members of a writing collective, the Life Righting Collective (LRC: www.liferighting.co.za), were purposively sampled and interviewed by medical students as part of a Medical Humanities special study module. Five major interconnected themes emerged. The LRC as a specific intervention was central to the benefits described. The findings of this study indicated that life writing is a useful non-medical, cost-efficient method to improve resilience to trauma, as well as improving the psychological well-being of the participants. In addition, participants reported positive experiences regarding personal development, overall wellness and mental health, and that life writing can engender a sense of community. Resource-constrained countries in the Global South, like South Africa, where there have been historical and ongoing multiple traumas, need interventions for healing and wellness that are low cost and can be replicated.</p>","PeriodicalId":46435,"journal":{"name":"Medical Humanities","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2024-02-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41104759","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Narratives of childhood sexual abuse: healing through music in Ian McEwan's <i>On Chesil Beach</i>.","authors":"Neha Hejaz, Rajni Singh","doi":"10.1136/medhum-2023-012744","DOIUrl":"10.1136/medhum-2023-012744","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Narratives of survivors or by survivors offer useful and compelling insights into the experiences of abuse and its consequent effect on health. Reading such narratives can help a physician or clinician to understand the complexities of abuse. Furthermore, the critical study of narratives can open multiple therapeutic options for survivors of abuse to cater both their mental health and medical problems. In this article, we deal with the genre of childhood sexual abuse survivor's narrative and its clinical application adding to the discourse of medical humanities and then critically examine one such narrative (<i>On Chesil Beach</i> by Ian McEwan) in particular and explore the therapeutics of music in abused victim's clinical care.</p>","PeriodicalId":46435,"journal":{"name":"Medical Humanities","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2024-02-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"71487253","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Ann Luce, Georgia Turner, Lauren Kennedy, Reece D Bush-Evans
{"title":"\"Quite simply they don't communicate\": a case study of a National Health Service response to staff suicide.","authors":"Ann Luce, Georgia Turner, Lauren Kennedy, Reece D Bush-Evans","doi":"10.1136/medhum-2023-012722","DOIUrl":"10.1136/medhum-2023-012722","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Workplace suicide can have significant knock-on effects within an organisation, yet research has shown within the healthcare profession, not all staff receive suicide prevention training, and few employers take the time to reflect on the need to change workplace policies or practices following the death of a staff member to suicide. How staff suicide is communicated across an organisation and to family members is important. Effective crisis communication is critical for effective management for a timely and sensitive response to a staff suicide within an organisation. By doing so, workplaces can help to reduce the significant emotional trauma suicide can have on an employee, and support good mental health across its workforce. This study aimed to explore and understand the communication processes around staff suicide across a National Health Service (NHS) Trust and to provide recommendations based on these findings. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 29 participants, each lasting approximately 90 min. The Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research (COREQ) guidelines were followed. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data, resulting in seven themes being identified based on communication. Findings indicated that the Trust had no clear communication strategy in place for tackling staff suicide. Each suicide was handled differently, training across staff roles was lacking and operational procedures were deemed insensitive. This paper aimed to provide insight into the communication strategies used in the aftermath of a staff suicide. These findings highlight the inconsistency of the communication, lack of clear policy and guidance and the negative impact this had on staff. Further research is needed across NHS Trusts nationwide to gain insight into the current communication strategies in place to develop a national approach to clear communication following the death of an NHS worker to suicide. <b>Tweetable abstract:</b> Effective communication is critical in the aftermath of an NHS staff suicide. By doing so, NHS Trusts can help to reduce the trauma suicide can have on an employee and support good mental health across its workforce @stann2.</p>","PeriodicalId":46435,"journal":{"name":"Medical Humanities","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2024-02-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139404756","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"They are not all wolves: menstruation, young adult fiction and nuancing the teenage boy.","authors":"Jemma Walton","doi":"10.1136/medhum-2023-012613","DOIUrl":"10.1136/medhum-2023-012613","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Before the 2020 publication of Elana K. Arnold's <i>Red Hood</i> and Sarah Cuthew's <i>Blood Moon,</i> Judy Blume's 1970 novel <i>Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret,</i> which ends with the heroine praising God for blessing her with menarche, was one of the only young adult novels to feature menstruation as a central theme. This paper opens with a brief overview of recent English and American menstrual activism and a discussion of scholarly considerations of the menstrual cycle in literature. Then, through a close comparative reading of works by Arnold and Cuthew, I argue that both novels fulfil their feminist agendas by representing the stigmatised experience of the physicality of menses, and by depicting young women negotiating instances of the kinds of misogyny that punctuate contemporary Western culture. At the same time, the novels share an overly simplistic, binarised attitude towards male adolescents. That aspect highlights the need for the development of affirmative feminist boys studies. Such progress would foster more nuanced literary depictions of young males-and address the challenges of building a more equitable world, thereby responding to some of the motivating concerns of <i>Red Hood</i> and <i>Blood Moon</i>.</p>","PeriodicalId":46435,"journal":{"name":"Medical Humanities","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2024-02-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10627997","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Alice Chesterfield, Jordan Harvey, Callum Hendrie, Sam Wilkinson, Norha Vera San Juan, Vaughan Bell
{"title":"Meaning and role of functional-organic distinction: a study of clinicians in psychiatry and neurology services.","authors":"Alice Chesterfield, Jordan Harvey, Callum Hendrie, Sam Wilkinson, Norha Vera San Juan, Vaughan Bell","doi":"10.1136/medhum-2023-012667","DOIUrl":"10.1136/medhum-2023-012667","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The functional-organic distinction attempts to differentiate disorders with diagnosable biological causes from those without and is a central axis on which diagnoses, medical specialities and services are organised. Previous studies report poor agreement between clinicians regarding the meanings of the terms and the conditions to which they apply, as well as noting value-laden implications of relevant diagnoses. Consequently, we aimed to understand how clinicians working in psychiatry and neurology services navigate the functional-organic distinction in their work. Twenty clinicians (10 physicians, 10 psychologists) working in psychiatry and neurology services participated in semistructured interviews that were analysed applying a constructivist grounded theory approach. The distinction was described as often incongruent with how clinicians conceptualise patients' problems. Organic factors were considered to be objective, unambiguously identifiable and clearly causative, whereas functional causes were invisible and to be hypothesised through thinking and conversation. Contextual factors-including cultural assumptions, service demands, patient needs and colleagues' views-were key in how the distinction was deployed in practice. The distinction was considered theoretically unsatisfactory, eventually to be superseded, but clinical decision making required it to be used strategically. These uses included helping communicate medical problems, navigating services, hiding meaning by making psychological explanations more palatable, tackling stigma, giving hope, and giving access to illness identity. Clinicians cited moral issues at both individual and societal levels as integral to the conceptual basis and deployment of the functional-organic distinction and described actively navigating these as part of their work. There was a considerable distance between the status of the functional-organic distinction as a sound theoretical concept generalisable across conditions and its role as a gatekeeping tool within the structures of healthcare. Ambiguity and contradictions were considered as both obstacles and benefits when deployed in practice and strategic considerations were important in deciding which to lean on.</p>","PeriodicalId":46435,"journal":{"name":"Medical Humanities","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2024-02-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"134650212","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Autobiographisches Wiedererzählen","authors":"Shevek K. Selbert","doi":"10.14361/9783839471906","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.14361/9783839471906","url":null,"abstract":"Wie erzählen Menschen ihre Lebensgeschichten? Und wie verändern sich diese Erzählungen im Laufe der Zeit? Shevek K. Selbert widmet sich an der Schnittstelle von Biographieforschung, Psychologie und Erzählforschung vollumfänglich wiederholten biographisch-narrativen Interviews, die im Abstand von zehn Jahren geführt wurden. Als Pionierarbeit qualitativer Längsschnittforschung entwickelt er Methoden, um die Erzählversionen miteinander zu vergleichen - und bietet einen einzigartigen Einblick in die Dynamik sowie die (auch therapeutische) Bedeutung von Selbsterzählungen für die Identitätsbildung und die Lebensgestaltung.","PeriodicalId":46435,"journal":{"name":"Medical Humanities","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2024-02-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140461682","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Intrusion of the other: identity, ethics and transplantation in Sui Ishida’s Tokyo Ghoul","authors":"Hsin-chi Chang","doi":"10.1136/medhum-2023-012758","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1136/medhum-2023-012758","url":null,"abstract":"This essay examines the profound themes and complex narratives presented in Sui Ishida’s Tokyo Ghoul , focusing on the illegal xenotransplantation and the transformation of the protagonist, Ken Kaneki, as he undergoes ghoulification. It delves into concerns surrounding patient autonomy and the integrity of medical procedures within organ transplantation, raising thought-provoking questions about identity and the process of reconciling one’s sense of incompleteness in the context of xenograft research aimed at surpassing the transplantation. Through his transformation into a ghoul, Kaneki embodies the challenges faced by individuals undergoing organ transplantation and the profound impact it has on their sense of self, relationships and societal acceptance. The essay offers an insightful analysis of the stages of Kaneki’s ghoulification, shedding light on the interplay between medical technology, power dynamics, oppression and personal agency. It draws connections to philosophical and literary works, such as Jean-Luc Nancy’s reflections on organ transplantation and Kafka’s The Metamorphosis , to enhance the exploration of themes within Tokyo Ghoul . In this essay, a comprehensive examination of the intricate dynamics of power, control and oppression within medical technology takes place. It underscores the challenges Kaneki faces as he navigates his transformed body and grapples with societal prejudices and discrimination. The essay critically reflects on the complex interplay of power, identity and ethics within the context of Tokyo Ghoul , prompting contemplation of the multifaceted dimensions of human existence and the societal structures that shape our understanding of identity, autonomy and acceptance. Kaneki’s transformation serves as a lens through which readers can examine the nuanced complexities and challenges associated with organ transplantation, medical ethics and the social implications of difference. By exploring the multifaceted themes and intricate narratives of Tokyo Ghoul , this essay considers the profound implications of xenotransplantation and the ethical considerations that arise in medical practice. No data are available.","PeriodicalId":46435,"journal":{"name":"Medical Humanities","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2024-02-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139663106","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}