Non-credit Narrative Medicine Certificate Program

TIMELINE

JULY 31st: APPLICATION PERIOD OPENS
AUGUST 14th: APPLICATION PERIOD CLOSES
AUGUST 25th: DECISIONS ANNOUNCED
SEPTEMBER 1st: PROGRAM STARTS

CLICK HERE TO APPLY

ABOUT

The Non-Credit Narrative Medicine Certificate Program will launch in the Fall of 2023. This program is sponsored by the Wake Forest School of Medicine and the Wake Forest University Humanities Institute’s Story, Health, and Healing Initiative.

Through a variety of activities, enrollees in the certificate program will learn to integrate narrative medicine principles into their medical training and clinical practice with the goal of becoming clinicians who can care humanely for both patients and themselves.

This program is open to all students enrolled in degree programs at the Wake Forest School of Medicine.

CERTIFICATE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS

Enrollees will:

  1. View an online curriculum introducing the history and principles of narrative medicine as well as an introduction to narrative ethics.
    • The Principles and Practice of Narrative Medicine: recorded session that will cover the theoretical foundations of narrative medicine along with an introduction to narrative competence, the role of story in the center of the clinical encounter, and the practices of close reading and reflective writing.
    • Narrative Medicine in Practice / Parallel Charts: recorded session in which students will be oriented to the phenomenological practice of meaning making amidst difficult clinical scenarios that providers encounter. Students will learn the basic principles of self-care and resilience building through careful reflection and discussion with peers.
    • Narrative Ethics: prerecorded session in which students will explore the ethical boundaries of close reading and reflective writing about particular patient scenarios. This session will include exploration of individual bias, patient privacy, and peer accountability in the practice of narrative medicine.
  2. Attend at least 6 Story, Health, and Healing programs/events while enrolled in the certificate program, engage in reflective writing after each program/event (reflective writing may consist of journaling, reflective essays, creative nonfiction, fictional narrative, or poetry), and discuss the program/event and the reflective writing with the primary mentor.
  3. Satisfy at least 2 of the following:
    • Complete a defined amount of reading from a reading list provided by the certificate program faculty and discuss the readings either with the primary mentor or with other mentors/enrollees at a group meeting
    • Attend 2 group meetings for enrollees where the enrollee shares/workshops creative work or discusses pre-assigned readings
    • Attend 2 outside events relevant to narrative medicine, with reflective writing and discussion with the primary mentor required after each program (the mentor should approve these events in advance)
    • Complete a public reading or performance of creative work made during the certificate program (this may be the capstone project) (the enrollee secures the venue and publicizes the event)
    • Submit a creative work for publication (this may be the capstone project)
  4. Complete a capstone project, which may be creative or scholarly (project will be designed by the enrollee and primary mentor and then submitted to certificate program faculty for review, comment, and approval)
  5. Create a written plan for how the enrollee intends to incorporate narrative medicine principles and practice into future clinical or other work
  6. Attend a minimum of 4 meetings with certificate program mentors while completing items 2 and 3 above

CONTACT

Aimee Mepham, MFA
Associate Director, WFU Humanities Institute
mephamam@wfu.edu

Ethan Stonerook, MS, MMS, PA-C
Assistant Professor, WF School of Medicine
estonero@wakehealth.edu