Educational Goals and Philosophy

   The Department of Medical Humanities and Social Medicine is an essential component of the College of Medicine of Chang Gung University.  The Department is committed to excellence in educating future physicians who will exhibit professionalism, compassion, personal integrity, and have a global perspective. Our department is dedicated to helping medical students develop the above qualities, by including them as a vital component in our “Curriculum for General Education”. Our program’s academic mission is to cultivate future generations of physicians who will give priority to the principle of beneficence, and who will always respect and support patient autonomy. These physicians will have the skills to provide culturally competent care, regardless of the patient’s socioeconomic background.

   Integral to our educational commitment is designing courses that can effectively promote the development of our students in the following areas:

1. Professional Integrity: to always act in accordance with the patient’s best interest; to always respect patient autonomy, to demonstrate empathy towards patient’s families, and to be mindful of social justice
2. Intellect: to be equipped with social, anthropological, and philosophical knowledge, and to use those skills in clinical situations and with patient consultations
3. Clinical skills: to be able to apply the knowledge learned from medical school to future medical practice

   Our department has been effectively incorporating the above points of emphasis into our program through courses taught in lecture hall environments and extracurricular activities organized by the College of Medicine and the student body. In the future, our department will continue to improve our curriculum by striving for more robust training in the medical humanities, and in their application to clinical practice.