Medical Anthropology and Cross-Cultural Practice: 2008-2009 Courses

GMS MA 700 History and Theory of Medical Anthropology, Part I
Prereq: consent of instructor. This course introduces the history of the field of medical anthropology, and of theoretical orientations related to understanding and analyzing health and medicine in society and culture. Readings will exemplify interpretive strategies applied to health-related experiences, discourse, knowledge, and practice.
location: BUSM Instructional Building L-213
Laird. 3 cr., 1st sem, M 9-11:50

GMS MA 710  Medical Anthropological and Qualitative Research Methods and Design
Prereq: consent of instructor. Introduction to methodology for ethnographic field research in medical anthropology, and qualitative research methods. This course examines issues in designing anthropological research, and reviews theoretical approaches to research ethics, designing research, framing questions and questionnaire design, and data collection techniques.
location: BUSM Instructional Building L-213
Barnes. 3 cr., 1st sem, T 9-12

GMS MA 720 World Religions, Medicines, and Healing 
An introduction to approaches to healing integral to Hindu, Buddhist, Jewish, Christian, Muslim, African, African descended, Latin American, Chinese, Native American traditions, and to some of the outcomes of their interactions, in relation to the experience of affliction, suffering, and healing.
location: BUSM Instructional Building L-112
Barnes. 3 cr., 1st sem, T, Th 4:30-5:50

GMS MA 730 Medical Anthropology and the Cultures of Biomedicine
This course examines biomedicine as a cultural system with local and national variations worldwide, all of which have undergone changes over time. Topics include acculturation, medicalization, the patient-doctor relationship, understandings of interventions, and interpretations of chronicity.
location: CT462/CT462A Crosstown 801 Mass Ave
Laird. 3 cr., 1st sem, W 9-11:50

Spring 2009

Religion and Public Health [Course number being assigned]
This course will explore relationships between religion and health in the context of public health projects. We will critically examine research literature on “religion, spirituality, and health” to understand problems of definition and the various proposed conceptual links between these fields of human experience. We will explore the historical development of medicine and public health in the context of religious communities and missionary outreach. Students will consider examples of faith-based public health organizations and current research on “religious health assets,” both locally and internationally. We will consider the role of public health efforts in proselytizing for particular religious, political, economic, and scientific values.
Laird. 4 cr./ 2 cr. for medical students. MW 8:30-9:50 am

GMS MA 740-A1: The Cultural Formation of the Clinician & Its Implications for Practice
This course provides a context for students to explore and reflect on: 1) the cultures of biomedicine into which clinician-students are being socialized; 2) the values students bring to their professions and how they influence their personal and professional lives, including responses to diverse patient cultures; 3) underlying assumptions about self and other with an aim to understanding how we interact with difference and power. The course is designed to model a commitment to self-awareness and introspection, fundamental to the process of developing healing partnerships with patients and colleagues alike.
Barnes. 4 cr./2 cr. for med. students. M 5:30-8:20 pm

History of Medical Pluralism in the United States [Course number being assigned]
This course explores issues in the social history of medical pluralism in the United States, from the colonial period to the present. We will draw on this history as a window onto a changing American society. We will examine relations between medical concepts, therapies, and currents in social thought; the interplay between different approaches to medicine and healing; and the role of class, race, and gender.
Barnes. 4 cr./ 2 cr. for med. students. W 4:30-7:20 pm

Society, Healthcare, and the Cultures of Competence [Course number being assigned]
This course will examine the history and current policies of health education, focusing on the conceptual formation of key “professional competencies” in medicine, acupuncture, and pastoral care. Students will read autobiographical accounts of medical students, physicians, chaplains, and acupuncturists. They will discuss issues of designing and implementing “cultural competence” curricula, conduct interviews with faculty, administrators, staff, or health professional students, and design a plan for evaluating and critiquing such curricular interventions in light of the culture of professions and institutions.
Laird. 4 cr./ 2 cr. for medical students. T,Th 8:30-9:50 am