Medicine's missing dimension. (41/70)

In medicine we tend to restrict practice to using a purely intellectual understanding grounded in science to conceptualize patients and their illnesses. This approach is radically different from the experientially rich healing practices found throughout the world that presumably date to the beginning of humanity. Shamanistic healing is often typified as involving magical thinking and communication with beings other than human. These aspects of traditional healing are difficult to merge with science, the backbone of our medical practice. However, we can also describe traditional healing as meeting patients beyond the conventional self and beyond conceptual filters to directly face sickness and death in a larger context. There are a variety of traditions for learning to live our lives in this larger context, including contemplative religious practices and secular mindfulness practice. Although self discipline, effort and courage are likely to be required to take these paths, they can transform the practice of medicine into a richer experience. Using Zen Buddhism as an example of a contemplative spiritual approach, I will explore how it is possible to preserve a respectful relationship to science while engaging in healing as what the African Bushmen called "a life thing, a death thing".  (+info)

Expectations of pregnant women and partners concerning their participation in humanized births. (42/70)

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Humanization and volunteering: a qualitative study in public hospitals. (43/70)

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Comparison of motivational interviewing with acceptance and commitment therapy: a conceptual and clinical review. (44/70)

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SISPRENATAL as a tool for evaluating quality of prenatal care. (45/70)

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Receptiveness and humanization from the perspective of anesthesiologists. (46/70)

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Andres Laguna: a great medical humanist (1499-1559). (47/70)

Andres Laguna, a Spanish humanist physician of the 16th century, occupies an important position in the history of medicine. An illustrious and brilliant mind, pioneer of anatomy and urology, Laguna proved to be a true pacifist and humanitarian with his knowledge standards and his political eloquence. He deserves to be remembered today as the perfect example of the Renaissance men, a true Homo Universalis.  (+info)

Patient-reported outcomes (PROs): the significance of using humanistic measures in clinical trial and clinical practice. (48/70)

Patient-reported outcome (PRO) is an "umbrella term" that covers a whole range of potential types of measurement but it is used specifically to refer to all measures quantifying the state of health through the evaluation of outcomes reported by the patient himself/herself. PROs are increasingly seen as complementary to biomedical measures and they are being incorporated more frequently into clinical trials and clinical practice. After considering the cultural background of PROs - that is the well known patient-centered model of medicine -, their historical profile (since 1914, the year of the first outcome measure) and typologies, the paper aims at debating their methodological complexity and implementation into practice. Some clinical trials and therapeutic managements utilizing patient-centered measures will be also analyzed.  (+info)