Humanistic Medicine

About

The Master Scholars Program in Humanistic Medicine (MSPHM) at NYU School of Medicine is dedicated to promoting humanistic values in medical education among young physician scholars.  Through innovative seminars, colloquia, and activities, the MSPHM enables students to pursue their creative and intellectual interests not necessarily covered in the core curriculum.  By approaching questions in medicine through the alternative lenses of the arts, humanities, and social sciences, the MSPHM emphasizes the shared humanity of all those involved in the delivery and receipt of health care. 

As a component of the Office of Student Affairs, the mission of the MSPHM is to empower students to become humanistic clinicians, scientists, leaders, and advocates.  However, our programmatic activities are open to all members of NYU, which means that students, faculty, and staff from diverse departments often sit alongside one another in seminars and other events. This facilitates dynamic dialogues and fosters personal and professional development for all involved with the program.

The programmatic activities of the MSPHM cultivate the values of empathy, justice, respect, compassion, and communication. These activities include Dialogues sessions with faculty who share their career trajectories and work in such areas as medical humanities, medical ethics, human rights, and health policy; exhibits featuring the artwork and photography of students and faculty; lectures with nationally recognized scholars, writers, and artists; film screenings and theatrical performances; visits to museums and historical sites; and collaborations with other programs in the broader NYU community.  Ultimately, our goal is to prepare students to make meaningful differences in the individual lives of patients and promote the health and wellbeing of our society.

News

On April 3, 2013 The Master Scholars Program in Humanistic Medicine (MSPHM) officially welcomed bestselling author and neurologist Dr. Oliver Sacks to the NYUSOM community through its annual Spring Colloquium, "Physicians as Writers: Oliver Sacks in Conversation with Danielle Ofri." Dr. Sacks, who in 2012 was appointed Clinical Professor of Neurology, was interviewed onstage by fellow physician-writer Dr. Danielle Ofri, Associate Professor of Medicine and Editor-in-Chief of the Bellevue Literary Review. The two of them explored the ethics of writing about patients, the impact of storytelling on the doctor-patient relationship, and the complexities of some of the neurological cases in Dr. Sacks' most recent book Hallucinations. The colloquium was attended by nearly 400 guests and was live streamed on the MSPHM website, where approximately 1800 viewers tuned in. CLICK HERE to watch the full video.

Contact Us

Allen Keller, M.D.
Program Director
allen.keller@nyumc.org  

Katie Grogan, D.M.H., M.A.
Program Coordinator
katie.grogan@nyumc.org