Literature and Medicine: Humanities at the Heart of Health Care

Health care professionals at Maryland hospitals connect with patients and each other through reading and discussion.

Literature and Medicine: Humanities at the Heart of Health Care is an acclaimed hospital-based reading and discussion program that gives medical workers—from surgeons to receptionists, nurses to trustees—the opportunity to read and reflect on issues inherent to the enterprise of health care.

Participants connect the worlds of science and lived experience, contemplate professional roles and relationships, and share reflections with colleagues by reading and discussing relevant plays, short stories, poetry, fiction, and personal narratives.

Literature and Medicine has a significant effect on the way participants understand their work and their relationships with patients and with each other. It’s proven to be an innovative and cost-effective way to improve patient care while contributing to participant’s job satisfaction.

Is your medical institution a partner with MHC? Join Mercy Medical Center, Kennedy-Krieger Institute, and Union Hospital in Elkton, by bringing Literature and Medicine to your hospital. Contact Jean Wortman at 410-685-4187 or at Email Jean Wortman for more information.

Check out this article in Synapse for an inside look at Literature and Medicine in Maryland!

See what participants say about the program: Literature and Medicine

Review a sampling of favorite readings

Developed by the Maine Humanities Council in 1997, more than 90 hospitals in 19 states now participate in this innovative program. Find out more about Literature and Medicine from the Maine Humanities Council.