Symposium offers humanities perspective on health care

Health professionals, artists, students and community members are invited to the “Healing and the Humanities Symposium: Exploring the Role of Humanities in Health Care” at 8:30 a.m. March 5 in Ashurst Hall at Old Main.

The free, half-day symposium will focus on three thematic strands including science and ethics, humanities in the training of health professionals and humanistic approaches to health policy.

“While many people understand that the sciences have much to offer health care, too few members of the public, too few health-care providers and too few scholars realize that the humanities are crucial to understanding the issues surrounding wellness, contemporary medicine and preparing for a career in medicine,” said Jean Boreen, professor of English and associate dean of the College of Arts and Letters.

A keynote lecture, “The ‘R’ Word: The Ethics of Rationing Health Care,” will be presented by Joan McGregor, professor of philosophy at Arizona State University. The lecture will be followed by breakout sessions facilitated by humanities scholars and health-care professionals.

Registration is free, but limited. For information or to register contact Jean Boreen at (928) 523-6765 or Jean.Boreen@nau.edu.