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Doctors and other healthcare professionals should use the arts and humanities to develop their empathic skills and improve mental healthcare practice, according to a new book.
Mental Health, Psychiatry and the Arts, edited by Dr Victoria Tischler in the Division of Psychiatry at The University of Nottingham, argues that visual art, poetry writing, novels and music can be used in the education of medical and nursing students and other mental health professionals to improve their understanding of the patient experience.
And the pleasure they can bring can also act as a mechanism for coping with the stresses of working with those who have mental health problems.
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“The book aims to provide evidence of the value of the arts and humanities in the teaching of doctors and other mental healthcare professionals,” said Dr Tischler. “My own students have responded positively to this mode of teaching; they have begun to paint, act and write poetry and some have read their first novel since starting medical school”.
“It helps them to relate better to patients and also to deal with a demanding vocational career choice. It is the first book of its kind, so I hope it will guide and inspire others in establishing teaching in this area.”
The comprehensive book, published by Radcliffe Publishing, includes contributions from clinical staff, service users and academics and explores how visual art, cinema, music, poetry, literature and drama can inform the teaching and practice of psychiatrists and other mental health professionals.
The book was launched at the 1st International Health Humanities conference on The University of Nottingham’s Jubilee Campus from August 6–8. Focused on the theme of Madness and Literature, the conference attracted delegates from around the world, including Australia, North America, Europe and the Middle East.
The conference was the first event of its kind in the world to bring together people from a medical and psychiatric background with literary and humanities experts, alongside users of mental health services and their carers to promote collaboration and to enhance the human elements of clinical care.
Keynote speakers at the conference were leading literary scholar Professor Elaine Showalter, Professor Kay Redfield Jamison, Dalio Family Professor in Mood Disorders, Professor of Psychiatry at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Co-Director of the Johns Hopkins Mood Disorders Center, and Professor Paul Crawford, the first Professor of Health Humanities, based in Nottingham’s School of Nursing and Midwifery and Physiotherapy.
The event was organised as part of the Madness and Literature Network led by academics at Nottingham, which encourages debate between academics, clinicians, mental health service users and carers on what benefits literature can have in developing empathy skills and offering broader insights into mental illness than are available in a clinical textbook. The Madness and Literature Network, founded by Professor Paul Crawford, Charley Baker, Dr Brian Brown, Dr Maurice Lipsedge and Professor Ronald Carter, is a partnership between The University of Nottingham, the Arts and Humanities Research Council, The Institute of Mental Health, De Montfort University, and was informed by work conducted with generous funding from The Leverhulme Trust.
More information about the conference is available on the web at
www.madnessandliterature.org
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Notes to editors: The University of Nottingham is ranked in the UK's Top 10 and the World's Top 100 universities by the Shanghai Jiao Tong (SJTU) and the Times Higher Education-QS World University Rankings.
More than 90 per cent of research at The University of Nottingham is of international quality, according to RAE 2008, with almost 60 per cent of all research defined as ‘world-leading’ or ‘internationally excellent’. Research Fortnight analysis of RAE 2008 ranks the University 7th in the UK by research power. In 27 subject areas, the University features in the UK Top Ten, with 14 of those in the Top Five.
The University provides innovative and top quality teaching, undertakes world-changing research, and attracts talented staff and students from 150 nations. Described by The Times as Britain's “only truly global university”, it has invested continuously in award-winning campuses in the United Kingdom, China and Malaysia. Twice since 2003 its research and teaching academics have won Nobel Prizes. The University has won the Queen's Award for Enterprise in both 2006 (International Trade) and 2007 (Innovation — School of Pharmacy), and was named ‘Entrepreneurial University of the Year’ at the Times Higher Education Awards 2008.
Nottingham was designated as a Science City in 2005 in recognition of its rich scientific heritage, industrial base and role as a leading research centre. Nottingham has since embarked on a wide range of business, property, knowledge transfer and educational initiatives (www.science-city.co.uk) in order to build on its growing reputation as an international centre of scientific excellence. The University of Nottingham is a partner in Nottingham: the Science City.
About the book:
Mental Health Psychiatry and the Arts, edited by Dr Victoria Tischler is published by Radcliffe Publishing — more information from Dan Allen, Radcliffe Publishing,at DAllen@radcliffemed.com or
www.radcliffe-oxford.com
“The authors of this wonderful handbook provide a convincing argument that the arts are good for what ails us. They have each used a preferred artistic medium to deepen personal reflection and to enhance their own creativity as physicians , teachers and therapists. Their models are clear, their suggestions practical, but none of the approaches you’ll find here is reductive or simplistic. Try some of the reflective exercises and teaching strategies. You will be sure to rediscover something you have always cherished about the art of healing.” — from the Foreword by Allan D Peterkin, University of Toronto, Canada
“Doctors need the soul of an artist and must be aware of the value that arts have for society and the individual” — from the foreword by Dinesh Bhugra, Chair of the Royal College of Psychiatrists.