March 20, 2026

What’s the point? Medicine needs the Humanities

29 minutes

"Medicine, like people, is messy."

In the first episode of a new series from the Medical Humanities podcast, we tackle a question often asked by both sceptics and practitioners: What is the point of the Medical Humanities?

Jointly hosted by Dr. Sarah Ahmed (Paediatrician and Medical Humanities scholar) and Dr. Sabina Dosani (Medical Humanities' Editor-in-Chief and Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist), this conversation features a deep-dive with two leading voices in the field:

Dr. Wing May Kong, Honorary Senior Lecture in Endocrinology and Ethics from Imperial College London, and Chair of Trustees of the Institute of Medical Ethics. https://profiles.imperial.ac.uk/w.kong

Dr. Grace Halden, Reader in Contemporary Literature and Medical Humanities, and co-director of the Centre for Medical and Health Humanities at Birkbeck, University of London. https://www.drgracehalden.com/

They explore why healthcare is about far more than just data and objectivity. From the unconventional use of sculpture to teach medical students the power of touch, to the "liberating" impact of bringing lived experience and creative non-fiction into the NICU, they also discuss how the humanities create a vital, legitimising space for the stories that don't fit into a clinical record.

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The Medical Humanities is produced by Letícia Amorim, and is edited by Letícia Amorim and Nick Currey.

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By BMJ Group

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