Hi Everyone, So - our last blog. I have really enjoyed this class so far, and was captivated by how storytelling is a completely inborn characteristic to humans.
Since I am pursuing a career as a Physicians Assistant, I knew I wanted to incorporate my research project into that profession- how can it benefit, or teach me something that will help me in my future. Upon meeting with professor Jeffreys, I decided upon the initial meeting between a doctor and a patient. The patient history is such a vital component of a patients health care plan- and furthermore, helps establish an understanding between the doctor and the patient.
To me, storytelling fits in perfectly! When obtaining a patient history, we are essentially documenting a personal narrative. This was a perfect research project for me because it completely encompasses both of my disciplines. Obtaining a personal narrative is Human Communication, and the reasoning behind obtaining the history is for the perpetuation of the patients health- Biology.
While doing my research it was simple to find articles that pertained to my project- human communication and biology work in correlation with one another in a health care setting. Also, I was very intrigued to see that other disciplines made their way into my research as well. An article pertaining to Ancient Chinese and Eastern Indian Civilizations utilizing pictures to help spread knowledge regarding inoculations, and even an article about how the use of storytelling to communicate with Alzheimer's, or Amnesia patients- could be found in Anthropology or Sociology disciplines.
So the whole point of my research project is to show how storytelling benefits the communication between a health care worker and a patient.