Teaching Empathy? Implementing Theatre Pedagogy in the Medical School Curriculum

Abstract

The US Medical Licensing Examination requires future doctors to examine actors in simulated, improvisational scenarios to test students’ ability to empathetically collect medical histories, perform basic examinations and diagnose an illness. To better prepare for this clinical testing and improve upon patient complaints related to doctors’ insensitivity, medical schools increasingly turn to university theatre programs to help develop interpersonal aspects of doctor/patient interactions. Based on four years of devising and delivering successful theatre-based programs at two Philadelphia area medical schools, this essay details benefits, challenges and curricular implementation of empathy-building programs that emphasize the embodied nature of theatre and medicine.

Keywords

• empathy-building
• medical schools
• theatre pedagogy
• standard-patient