Connecting historical events to contemporary issues in bioethics and medical humanities teaching

Abstract

Introduction: Didactic pedagogy and passive learning in bioethics and medical humanities teaching are ineffective in engaging students and gauging learning interests. As a result, medical students are unaware of why and how bioethics and medical humanities relate to their learning and thus prioritising acquiring clinical knowledge in their medical education. Methods: This project involves a teacher-student collaboration to develop a teaching approach, which bridges historical events and contemporary issues, acknowledging how ethics and humanities are interwoven in clinical and everyday life. The objectives are to (1) highlight landmark historical events in bioethics and medical humanities and (2) recognise the evolving nature of values and social norms that inform current practice. Results: The three activities include the use of historical narratives, annual newsletter publications, and social media to augment didactic classroom teaching and learning. Video narratives of landmark events in bioethics were developed to strengthen historical knowledge and encourage self-reflection. The newsletter invited students to write about any topic in bioethics and medical humanities and enabled them to experience a peer-review process. It allowed students to critically appraise everyday issues. Social media engagement via Instagram offered a flexible and informal medium to diversify the traditional bioethics content taught in the classroom. The advantages and obstacles of each element are discussed. Conclusion: A holistic approach using historical narratives, newsletters, and social media engages students’ learning and allows students to become conscious of how past events shape the present.