Art in Medicine

I am not an artist, by any means, so I only signed up for this selective when several M2s told me how amazing it was. And they were right! It’s all about teaching us to be better observers, something that’s often lost in current medical education. We visit different art museums in St. Louis, which exposes us to different areas of the city and many types of collections. We first focus on observing without any interpretation. We then start to use those findings to build context and understanding. The course leader, Dr. Coughlin, easily bridges these exercises from looking at paintings/photos/sculpture to life as a physician. I’d highly recommend this class to anyone; no art experience needed at all!