Teaching Medical Humanities to medical students: implementing an integrated approach

Medical Humanities is a rapidly expanding field of medical education. However, in Italy, only a few humanities are included in the curricula of medical schools. Other humanities are provided in the form of elective courses, with great heterogeneity among the various medical schools. The objective of this paper is to present an optional course in Medical Humanities, based on an integrated approach, aiming at fostering the human and professional growth of medical students. In addition, the paper presents the research project associated with the integrated course, aimed at evaluating the effects of the course program on students' personal and professional skills and psychological well-being.