The University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine has launched a new course, "Prescribing Art: How Observation Enhances Medicine," in collaboration with the Abroms-Engel Institute for Visual Arts and the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. The course tasks junior- and senior-level medical students with analyzing famous artworks by artists including Michelangelo, Paul van Somer, Sir Luke Fildes, Mary Cassatt, and David Levinthal to improve their observational skills and address biases in health care. Developed by associate professor Stephen Russell, the course is an updated version of a 2011 program based on a Yale seminar, expanded this year to focus on bias and tolerance of ambiguity amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The initiative matters because it demonstrates how visual art can serve as a practical tool for medical training, helping future doctors become more mindful of assumptions based on race, class, or prior knowledge. By teaching students to describe rather than immediately diagnose, the course aims to reduce bias in clinical settings and prepare physicians to make decisions even when answers are uncertain—a skill highlighted by the pandemic. This interdisciplinary approach bridges art and medicine, offering a model for other institutions seeking to enhance empathy and observation in health care education.