What do the medical words we say every day mean, visually?
Artwork from our Women Physician Artist Consortium
A few years ago, a group of friends started a Women Physician Artist Consortium. We had over 50 physicians, ranging in specialty and stage of career. We had a diverse range of specialties, including ER doctors, Anesthesiologists, Pathologists, Family Medicine doctors, and Surgeons. We had people from different stages of their careers, including medical students and residents who were starting out, and attending physicians who had been practicing for years.
The Prompts
Each month, we choose a medically themed word as a prompt (ie, reproduction, gallbladder, transplant, etc). The goal was to create a 2D visual art piece that represents what that word meant to you. You were free to use any medium (digital, oil, watercolor, etc.). This became a creative and thoughtful way to bring the humanities into our work and understand what the words we use every day actually mean in a deeper and more abstract way.
Take a look at one of our prompts: Cancer.
At a glance, the artwork is quite diverse. But take a deeper look.
A and B were created by medical students (at the time). Their interpretations of the word cancer focused on its molecular aspects. Perhaps this reflected on their early stage in training, before they had begun caring for patients directly.
C was created by a pathologist. Cancer evoked images of histology slides and double-helix DNA strands.
E was created by an emergency physician. Cancer meant the unfortunate, unexpected discovery when you find metastatic disease when ordering a CT scan to rule something else out.
F was created by a gynecologic oncologic surgeon. Cancer was the enemy, and her role was that of the ‘slayer,’ who physically removed it.
Many of us use the word, cancer, in our day-to-day careers but may not have paused to reflect on what it actually represents. Our relationship with these medical-themed words often starts with their literal definitions, but their meaning runs much deeper. It shows us how the same word evokes completely different responses. It’s a creative way to explore language and meaning, and to delve deeper, bringing the humanities into our medical lives.
Another Prompt
The word auscultation means listening to the sounds of the body, usually using a stethoscope, to check for signs of illness.
A and E were more literal depictions of the word.
B was created by a Family Medicine doctor. She depicted using her stethoscope daily, not only for diagnosis, but as she described it, as her sword.
C was created by an Anesthesiology intern. She talked about how sound waves sometimes morph into waves on a monitor.
E was done by a medical student who was contemplating a career in ENT and was intrigued by the beautiful anatomy of the ear through her tessellations.
Our Women Physician Artist Consortium started as a creative way to look beyond the medical terms we use every day. It encouraged us to explore what they really mean. But it quickly became more than that—it gave us a way to connect through art.
Many of us came from different specialties and rarely crossed paths with each other. But through monthly art prompts and discussions, we got to know each other in a whole new way. It was inspiring to see medical students and experienced attendings having deep conversations, brought together by a shared love of creativity.
The monthly prompts gave us just enough direction to spark our imaginations and explore big ideas and emotions through visual art.
We’ve taken a break as life and clinical work took over, but I’d love to bring the group back in some form. It was a small spark of creativity that reminded us of the connection between art and medicine.
If you're interested in learning more about a few Physician-Artist from our group, please check out the interviews below.
Interview with Pathologist and collagist, Dr Laura Tafe
Interview with Anesthesiology Resident and creative, Dr. Sumana Mahata
Interview with Surgeon and Children's book illustrator Dr. Maria Baimas-George
And on a practical note
I’m giving the keynote at the 11th Annual Narrative Medicine Conference at Advocate Health this year. I’ll be talking about creativity in medicine. If you’re around, I’d love to see you there.
Creativity is a vital yet often overlooked aspect of medicine. It allows us to think outside the box, solve problems with empathy, and connect with patients on a deeper level. But why haven’t we fully developed or embraced our creative sides? During this talk, I’ll share my 20+ years of experience as both an Emergency Medicine Physician and an artist. I’ll tell you how I’ve combined my medical work with my art to create a career that’s both fulfilling and deeply meaningful. I’ll share my personal framework to help you unlock your creative selves, discover your unique identities, and align your purpose—helping you serve others but also reignite the joy that first drew you to medicine.
