Visual Data in Education and Health Research: Historical Reflections and Current Prognostications

This commentary serves to explore the relationship between photography and medicine since the 1800s, in order to establish a contemporary link between the two, and thus to act as a renewed invitation for pedagogical consideration for educators and researchers. Three themes are developed: first, there is a strong link between the advancement of photography as a technical field and the advancement of medical practices and education since the 1800s in a way which invites renewed consideration. Second, there is a strong mandate to consider the explosion of visual images in our everyday and global virtual landscapes vis a vis social media for the ongoing purpose of excellent standards for education and research. And finally, the field of narrative medicine has gained significant recognition, bringing the arts into clinical practice and training of clinicians, further suggesting the value and importance of visual data in the field of education and research. These 3 themes are the building blocks for an exploration of the value of visual data, here to stay in virtual and public educational domains. Educators in health sciences and health-related studies are invited to consider the value and strategies of visual data towards curriculum development, as transformative tools, and in regards to their potential not only for education, but also for clinical practice and research.