Medicine and the Art of Seeing
Main Article Content
Abstract
This Humanities in Medicine article is an examination of the use of formal fine arts training in medical curricula to enhance diagnostic skills. A great amount can be discerned about pathology and pathophysiology using visual cues. Conventional medical education stresses the importance of physical diagnostic skills but often omits explicit teaching on how to methodically observe for information that could be useful for diagnosis. The current curriculum could be greatly complimented by the study of fine arts, which deals directly with the careful observation, description, and interpretation of the visual world.
Cet article sur la médecine et les humanités est un aperçu sur la pertinence d’incorporer une formation formelle des beaux-arts dans le curriculum médical afin d’optimiser l’habileté des cliniciens à poser un bon diagnostic. L’utilisation de repères visuels est d’une grande utilité pour discerner la pathologie et la physiopathologie de différentes maladies. L’éducation médicale conventionnelle souligne l’importance de l’examen physique lorsqu’on doit poser un diagnostic, mais néglige parfois l’enseignement d’une approche méthodique qui utilise activement l’observation afin de repérer des informations qui pourraient être très utiles dans le diagnostic d’un patient. Le curriculum actuel pourrait très bien incorporer l’étude des beaux-arts, car celle-ci implique une observation, une description et une interprétation du monde visuel qui nous entoure.
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