Critical Medical Humanities

Inequities in health care delivery mean that many who most need health care cannot access it. To become health care professionals who are; also agents for the improvement of health outcomes for all, students need to be well-versed in the sociocultural and historical factors that influence health care and the social, economic and political systems through which it is delivered.

This Quarter at Aggie Square experience will prepare students to promote social equity and justice in health care, whether as providers, advocates, or policymakers. Students will receive a strong foundation in pressing areas of challenge and change in healthcare: medical technologies, data analysis, privacy, cultural sensitivity, equity, and access to care. Through courses in Science and Technology Studies and Religious Studies, a community internship, and a public lecture series, students will learn to understand the role of history, social institutions, and power dynamics in shaping our current health care system and begin to consider new solutions. 

Caring for people as a medical professional is a tangible way to contribute to individuals' well-being, but only if those individuals have access to care. The benefits of the last 150 years of medical innovation have not been distributed equitably. 

Curriculum

LEAD FACULTY

• Meaghan O’Keefe, Associate Professor, Religious Studies
• Alice Beecher Popejoy, Assistant Professor, Public Health Sciences

GUEST FACULTY

• Cherie Ginwalla, Professor, Department of Pediatrics

COURSES

This experience offers courses in Science and Technology Studies (STS) and Religious Studies (RST). By completing the experience, students will fulfill the Medical Humanities minor. Students who have taken RST 153, STS 122, or RST 152 can still participate in the program and will be enrolled in RST 198 to fully engage in the program.

• RST 130 Health Care Equity Lab, Speaker Series (4 units)
• A public speaker series, and a 4-unit skill-building laboratory will round out this experience. Students will learn to translate ideas and experiences from the entire program into real-world career experience by working in groups of four to identify and propose solutions to problems of health care equity.
• RST 152 Justice, Equity and Privacy in Medical Humanities (4 units)
• This course studies the religious bases of ethics by examining ethical problems that arise in different religious cultures worldwide and in nations where multiple religious cultures encounter similar issues. Taught by Meaghan O’Keefe and Cherie Ginwalla
• RST 153  Religion & Medicine (4 units)
• This course takes a cross-cultural approach to the relationship between religion and medicine from earliest times to the present, exploring how specific religious and philosophical worldviews have shaped and continue to shape attitudes toward physical and mental health.Taught by Meaghan O’Keefe.
• STS 122 Health and Medical Technologies (4 units)
• This course provides a critical and historical examination of medical technologies, including imaging, pharmaceuticals, genetics, and implants/devices. It explores the mutually constitutive relationship between health, medical technologies, and social differences such as race, gender, class, and sexuality. Taught by Alice Popejoy.
• STS 180 Internship (4 units)
• A 4-unit internship in a health-care-oriented community organization

INTERNSHIPS

A core component of the Critical Medical Humanities program includes participating in a research or internship experience offered for UC Davis credit. This career-based experience aims to match you with your goals, interests, and experience level. Students are placed after they are enrolled and confirmed in the program. Internship and research sites vary each year and examples of past placements include:

• Asian Resources, Inc. Community Services
• California Department of Public Health
• UC Davis Health Center for Healthcare Policy & Research
• Elica Health Centers
• UC Davis Department of Epidemiology
• Public Health Service and Systems Research Project
• Clinical and Translational Science Center at UC Davis
• Shifa Community Clinic
• UC Davis Health Comprehensive Cancer Center
• UC Davis Perinatal Origins of Disparities Center

ENGAGEMENT AND NETWORKING OPPORTUNITIES

Students will attend a public lecture series featuring experts from the fields of public health, genetics, law, history, cancer research, as well as others. Each student will have the opportunity for an informal lunch meeting with one of the speakers. These networking opportunities will provide students with contacts for future activities in these areas and widen the impact of the advancing healthcare equity through developing critical understanding of humanities in medicine and the contributions of a wide variety of fields.

Growing as a Community