The Health Humanities & Social Justice: BREATH, BODY, VOICE Conference sought to ask the question: “How are the humanities transforming health, and how is health transforming the humanities–and what do these mutual influences suggest concerning the health of the humanities?”
In this panel on race & medicine, Duke University associate professor of psychiatry Damon Tweedy, MD, and Duke surgical oncologist Lola Fayanju, MD, participated in conversation with University of Texas-Austin medical historian, Prof. John Hoberman, PhD as they discussed the work that is being done to increase the cultural competence of healthcare professionals in dealing with diversity among patients. This panel was moderated by Charmaine Royal, associate professor of African & African American Studies, Biology, and Community & Family Medicine at Duke University.
The conference was a culminating event of the 2014-2017 Mellon-sponsored Humanities Futures initiative at the Franklin Humanities Institute. Humanities Futures explores future strategies and directions of humanities, arts, and interpretive social science departments following more than two decades of interdisciplinary change and expansion. This capstone conference focused on the interdisciplinary interface between the humanities, social justice, and health, whether in the health sciences, clinical environments, or the lived experience of states of health.