The annual MSSU Artful Medicine Symposium explores the relationship of art and humanities with medicine, investigating how the active experience of the arts improves health care delivery and patient outcomes.
Medical education is increasingly challenged to develop curriculum that addresses ambiguity, empathy, and perspectives-taking. Artful Medicine is a symposium developed to explore the intersection and importance of the arts and humanities within medical practices, showcasing how it provides valuable teaching tools for health care professionals, especially to develop empathy and observation skills as well as improve communication with patients.
This joint production of the MSSU Departments of Biology and Art and Design is designed to engage artists and future health care practitioners, social workers, health care administrators, educators, and researchers. Participants will explore the meaning of medical professionalism and investigate ways to improve their observation skills that help paint a portrait of a patient as a person versus a collection of symptoms, lab tests, and scans.
This interdisciplinary symposium is open to students and faculty from ALL disciplines in order to better facilitate and discover the impact of art-based curriculum and practices on the improvement of training health practitioners and ultimately increase patient health.
Check out a retrospective of our previous Artful Medicine Symposiums; 2022 Where Art, Medicine and Education Intersect and 2023 Bridging Medicine and the Humanities
“ART and Medicine: A Physician’s Journey of ART and Healing.”
November 15 | 1:15 PM – 2:15 PM
Location: Connor Ballroom, BSC
Speaker: Nancy Tilson-Mallett, MD, FAC
Dr. Nancy Tilson-Mallett, MD, FACP, is a visual artist and physician who has integrated her two passions into both her practice and teaching. Over the years, she has explored methods for managing stress, learned relaxation and visualization techniques, and sought spiritual and personal fulfillment, embracing the "Mind, Body, Spirit" approach to healing. Like many healthcare providers, she has experienced burnout multiple times. The techniques she learned have been crucial in helping her avoid self-destructive tendencies. As an artist, Dr. Tilson-Mallett utilized art therapy techniques, while as an academic physician, she employed evidence-based exercises that met the basic competencies of medical professionals. The course she developed was evaluated using qualitative measures. This keynote lecture will introduce the audience to her favorite art lessons for those in the healing profession.
Dr. Tilson-Mallett is board-certified in Internal Medicine, Geriatrics, and Palliative Care. She practiced in a wide variety of settings, beginning with a National Health Care Service obligation as a primary care physician in Weeping Water, Nebraska. Her career extended across community, city, and academic settings in six states, 17 hospitals, and an Apache Indian Reservation. In her 50s, she transitioned into hospitalist work and concluded her career as an academic hospitalist with University Health, affiliated with the University of Missouri Kansas City Medical School (UMKC-MS). She held various leadership roles throughout her career and became known for her idealism, enthusiasm, and creative thinking. At UMKC-MS, she developed an accredited 5-hour course titled "ART and Medicine" for 5th and 6th-year students in the humanities department. Now retired, Dr. Tilson-Mallett leads a creative life, making art, conducting workshops, and volunteering as a docent at the Kemper Museum of Modern Art.
Music and Medicine: Creating Order out of Chaos
November 15 | 2:30 PM – 2:55 PM
Location: Connor Ballroom, Billingsly Student Center
Speaker: Dr. Scott Andelin, MD, Assistant Professor of Primary Care; Curriculum Director for Clinical Sciences
Dr. Scott Andelin, MD, graduated from St. Louis University School of Medicine in 2009 and completed his residency in Family Medicine at McKay Dee Family Medicine in Ogden, Utah, in 2012. He then returned to his home in southwest Missouri to practice medicine as a Family Medicine Hospitalist and Emergency Room Physician. He joined the Clinical Medicine Faculty at Kansas City University, Joplin, in 2021 and continues to educate first and second-year medical students.
In this session, Dr. Scott Andelin will explore the science behind music creation and its profound ability to foster a sense of peace and order for both listeners and creators. By examining how music can calm the mind and restore balance, he’ll draw parallels to physician well-being, highlighting how the act of making order from chaos—central to both music and medicine—can be a powerful tool for maintaining mental and emotional health. Additionally, he’ll discuss practical ways physicians can apply these principles to bring a sense of harmony and structure to their work as they care for patients.
Music as Medicine—Music is Medicine
November 15 | 3:00 PM – 3:25 PM
Location: Connor Ballroom, Billingsly Student Center
Speaker: Dr. Donald Hodges, Professor of Music, MSSU
Donald A. Hodges is Professor Emeritus at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, where he was Covington Distinguished Professor of Music and Director of the Music Research Institute (2003-2013). He holds degrees from the University of Kansas (BME) and the University of Texas (MM, PhD). His previous positions include the Philadelphia public schools, the University of South Carolina, Southern Methodist University, and the University of Texas at San Antonio.
Hodges is the author of Music in the Human Experience: An Introduction to Music Psychology (2011, 2020, in press) and A Concise Survey of Music Philosophy (2017). He has edited and co-edited key works such as The Handbook of Music Psychology (1980, 1996) and The Oxford Handbook of Music and the Brain (2019). With over 45 book chapters and 90 articles in music psychology and education, his research includes brain imaging studies of musicians using PET and fMRI.
Hodges has served on editorial committees for several journals and has presented widely in the U.S. and internationally. His biographical sketch is in the New Grove Dictionary of American Music, and his papers are available on his website: http://sites.google.com/site/donaldahodges/.
This presentation will provide a brief overview of the connections between music and healing, including music therapy, music medicine, and music’s role in health and wellbeing.
Music Therapy involves the structured use of music to achieve health goals for those with conditions such as Alzheimer’s, autism, cerebral palsy, and Parkinson’s. Music Medicine is used by healthcare professionals to address perioperative stress, pain therapy, palliative care, and more. Performing Arts Medicine focuses on the health of musicians and other artists, addressing hearing, vocal, musculoskeletal, and psychosocial health. The presentation will also highlight the Sound Health Initiative, a $20M research collaboration exploring how music impacts the brain for health and wellness.
Narrative Medicine
November 15 | 3:30 PM – 3:55 PM
Location: Connor Ballroom, BSC
Speaker: Dr. John Paulson, DO, PhD, FAAFP, Chair and Associate Professor of Primary Care; Associate Professor of Family Medicine, KCU
John Paulson, DO, PhD, FAAFP is an Associate Professor of Family Medicine. He graduated from Oklahoma State University Center for Health Science with a DO and PhD in Biomedical Science with an emphasis in pharmacology and physiology. Before medical school, he worked as a forensic scientist for the FBI, New Mexico State Police, and Tulsa Police Department. One of his cases made it on the A&E Cold Case Files television show. He attended Cox Family Medicine Residency in Springfield, MO. He continues to practice locally at Access Family Care in Joplin, MO.
Narrative Medicine is an approach that emphasizes the importance of patient stories in healthcare. Integrating the art of storytelling with medical practice helps clinicians better understand their patients' experiences, fostering empathy, communication, and more personalized care. It allows clinicians to connect with patients on a deeper level by encompassing the emotional and social contexts that shape a patient's health journey. The discussion will cover narrative medicine, how to introduce it into a busy practice, and will provide insight into its helpfulness for both the patient and physician.
Practicing Medicine: Keeping It Human-Centered in the Age of AI
November 15 | 4:00 PM – 4:25 PM
Location: Connor Ballroom, BSC
Speaker: Dr. Joseph Williams, EdD, MS, Director of COM Assessment and Analytics; Assistant Professor, KCU
Dr. Joseph Williams is the Director of Assessment and Data Analytics for the College of Osteopathic Medicine and an Assistant Professor in the Basic Sciences. He has over 17 years of experience in higher education in the classroom and laboratory, engaging the community and administration with a keen focus on what’s best for students. Participating in the completion and educational dissemination of the Human Genome Project through the Genomics Education Partnership gave him his first taste of technological breakthroughs and their potential to impact human health.
Artificial intelligence quickly caught his eye for similar potentials. With the empowerment from leadership in the College of Osteopathic Medicine, Dr. Williams began investigating the practical uses of AI and the need for purposeful training of future medical professionals. He is firm in his
belief that understanding these technologies at a fundamental level will empower physicians and make them valuable thought leaders in their evolution, adoption, and implementation to improve the lives and health of those they encounter.
The presentation, in collaboration with Dr. Luke Bobo, Director of Bioethics / Assistant Professor – Bioethics, and Student Doctors Alexis Valtier and Simran Anis, will present the perspective of a dedicated Artificial Intelligence educational experiences while firmly balancing the dichotomy of the Art of Medicine and how these two perspectives can work in synergy for physicians and patients.
Event Details:
Introduction to Art Studio Workshops
9:45 AM - 9:50 AM
Location: Connor Ballroom, BSC
Presenter: Mr. Frank Pishkur, M.F.A., Professor of Art & Chair of the Art & Design Department, MSSU
Art Studio Workshops
10:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Location: Fine Art Building
Observational Drawing Workshop – Led by Ms. Jessica Sellers – A11
Enhance your observational and diagnostic skills by learning to see details more clearly. This workshop will help you train your eye to notice subtle variations, an essential skill in patient care, as you learn to replicate forms as they actually appear rather than how you expect them to look.
Reserve your spot for the Observational Drawing Workshop by registering here.
Manipulated Clay Forms Workshop – Led by Mr. Frank A. Pishkur - A111
Develop your manual dexterity and hand strength, both critical for tasks like surgery, physical therapy, and other hands-on patient care. Working with raw clay to shape refined forms improves fine motor skills and increases tactile awareness, supporting more precise and effective patient interactions.
Reserve your spot for the Manipulated Clay Forms Workshop by registering here.
Seats are limited, so please register for the workshops early.
November 15/ 5:00 PM – 6:30 PM
Location: Connor Ballroom, BSC
Join us for the Poster Session from 5:00 PM to 6:30 PM in the Connor Ballroom, Billingsly Student Center. Faculty and students will present 23 posters on topics blending art, medicine, and science, showing how creativity enriches medical practice and education. Highlights include the influence of color in healing spaces, the roles of music and art therapy for autism, and movement in medical training.
Themes also cover physician burnout, holistic medical approaches, and the insights art and philosophy bring to understanding diseases and mental health.
A notable demonstration, Art in Motion: A Rube Goldberg Machine’s Lessons for Hurry Sickness & Burnout Prevention, by MSSU’s Dhvani Patel and Collin Gray, uses a Rube Goldberg machine to illustrate hurry sickness and burnout. Catch this 10-minute demonstration at 5:00 and 5:45 PM.
For a full list of posters, click here.
MSSU Faculty and Students
KCU Faculty and Students
Other
Please contact artfulmedicine@mssu.edu for any additional information.
To contact committee members, please email artfulmedicine@mssu.edu.
Dr. Alla Barry, M.D., Committee Co-Chair, Professor of Biology & Environmental Health, MSSU
Dr. Ree Wells-Lewis, Ph.D., Committee Co-Chair, Professor of Sociology, MSSU
Mr. Frank Pishkur, M.F.A., Professor of Art & Department Chair of Art & Design, MSSU
Dr. Amber Mintert, E.D., Associate Professor of Art/ Art Education, MSSU
Ms. Elmira Bagherzadeh, MFA, Assistant Professor of Art- Design, MSSU
Dr. Sherry Whiteman, Graduate Program Director, Healthcare Administration, Department Chair, Allied Health
Dr. Crystal Lemmons, DVM, Dean of the College of Health, Life Sciences, and Education
Dr. Marci Archer, Ph.D., Dean, College of Arts and Sciences
Dr. Robert Hillard, MD, FCAP, Assistant Professor of Pathology, Chair of Department of Pathology and Anatomical Sciences, Kansas City University, Joplin Campus
Contact Information:
For more information, please contact:
We look forward to your contributions and participation in the 2024 Artful Medicine Symposium. Let’s explore the intersections of our disciplines and inspire new pathways in medical practice and education
