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Updated: May 25, 2026

Using Visual and Narrative Methods to Achieve Fair Process in Clinical Care
Published on: February 16, 2011
Teaching suffering: the testimonial-commentary method
James D Katz1, Tenagne W Haile-Mariam, Katalin Roth
1Department of Medicine, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA. Jkatz@mfa.gwu.edu
Abstract:
Attempts to define professionalism and humanism suggest that qualities such as compliance to values, patient access, doctor-patient relationship, demeanor, professional management, personal awareness, and motivation are prominent thematic components. In this communication, we present a method for instruction in the values of humanism that may help to overcome the "curricular inertia that plagues medical education." Our approach is structured around a technique of testimonial-commentary as a novel approach to teaching humanism that does not rely upon the traditional role-modeling format. To develop effective medical school curricula for teaching humanism, we cannot rely upon the textbooks of normal and abnormal human anatomy and physiology. We must delve into the "unscientific" realms of human identity ranging from sensuality to brutality: self-preservation to sacrifice. Underneath it all, we must acknowledge that there are the ties that bind us together as people. The Seminar on Human Suffering challenges medical school educators to work with the community at large to insure that physicians will be able to serve those that seek their counsel.
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