The "Art of Medicine” lecture series at the Toronto Western Hospital, University Health Network and University of Toronto was the inception of Dr. Lisa Richardson in 2012. The original aim was to foster and support the “creativity, compassion, empathy, imagination, innovation, lateral and critical thinking of health care providers in complex clinical environments.” These noon rounds were a core component of the Internal Medicine CTU curriculum attended by medical students, residents, Department of Medicine faculty members, and allied health care professionals, and were situated alongside other didactic and interactive rounds on common medical topics such as heart failure and pneumonia. With this lecture series, Dr. Richardson led a cultural shift in our medical education and practice at Toronto Western Hospital. This fall, she moved her practice to the Toronto General Hospital site. I was honoured when she asked me to take over leading the lecture series.
As the new
Lead for the Art of Medicine thematic program at the HoPingKong Centre for
Excellence in Education and Practice (CEEP), I will continue the "Art of Medicine" lecture
series with the vision to advance the breadth and depth of a holistic medical
education experience, with the goal of improving patient care. The rounds will continue to create a space for exploration and engagement,
placing an emphasis on themes not traditionally taught in the mainstream noon
hour rounds curriculum, aiming to provoke
a deeper thinking of our practice, to incorporate a better understanding of
care at the bedside, and in the broader context.
The first
year theme for 2016-2017 will explore inseparable physician
identities: how we employ the Intrinsic CanMEDS Roles through
creativity and social engagement to achieve fulfilment in our professional
lives, self-actualization for our personal well-being and resilience in our
practice, while providing exceptional patient care. Keynote speakers will be
invited to share with us their productive professional endeavours outside of
their day-to-day patient care practice, and how their activities have shaped their careers
and patient interactions. As physician scientists, authors, journalists, artists,
social advocates, academic collaborators in the 3rd world, global
health leaders, activists, and social media enthusiasts, these highly engaging speakers
will explore how they came to find their passion, how it has enhanced their
compassion and drive for better patient care, and stimulate the audience to
find their own passion to bring to the bedside and beyond.
I would like to thank Dr. Rodrigo Cavalcanti, Director of
CEEP, and Dr. Herbert Ho Ping Kong for the opportunity to lead this program. This blog will chronicle the talks we host,
and my thoughts on how they fit into our educational programming and practice.
Consent from speakers will be obtained. The views voiced are my own, and do not necessarily reflect those of the institutions
with which I am affiliated. The blog is in the public domain; please contribute in a respectful way, and let us
know what you think.
Members of our Toronto academic and hospital institutions are
welcome to join us at our rounds. To be added to the mail list, please contact
our administrative assistant at sarah.meilach@uhn.ca.
