Building Bridges: A Readers' Theater Workshop of Imelda for Medical-Dental Trainees

Abstract: Lisa Simon notes that, while “it is obvious that our mouths are part of our bodies,”[1] medical and dental education remain mostly distinct, as are medical and dental practices. This divide has been built through a complex amalgam of historical influences that include racism, classism, environmental injustice, and workforce inequities. There is enormous potential value in understanding these forces and moving toward the integration of oral health and general medical care. While current education and practice structures contribute to the “medical-dental divide,” this session will demonstrate an educational initiative and instructional tools useful in bridging this historical dichotomy.

Imelda, by Richard Selzer, addresses student and clinician experiences at the intersection of dentistry and medicine, in the context of a story that raises universal questions: What does it mean to care for a human being as a patient? What does it mean to be a patient? Does it matter what part of the human patient you understand best? Can humans be cared for in parts? How do human doctors care for other human doctors?