Ancient Medicine and the Modern Physician

The classics department in collaboration with the Georgia Regents University/UGA Medical Partnership, will host a two-day symposium designed to find relevant historical practices that are useful to modern-day physicians:

Events will be held March 23-24 on both the UGA main campus and the Health Sciences Campus. Experts in ancient medicine and modern medical practices will present workshops, panel discussions and a keynote address.

"Methods of diagnosis are undergoing fundamental changes within American medical communities," said Nancy Felson, professor emerita in the classics department and one of the event organizers. "Physicians and other health care professionals now recognize that successful diagnosis is not only a matter of identifying symptoms, but rather an interpretive process involving the narrative arc of a patient's life, activities, habits, gene profile as well as the exhibited symptoms. This new and fundamental aspect of modern health care is rooted in ancient medical methods of diagnosis and patient narratives."

The symposium will begin March 23 with a 7 p.m. lecture in George Hall on the Health Sciences Campus.

Dr. Richard Panico will discuss "The Art of Medicine: It's Always Been About the Dialogue." A reception will follow his talk.

For more information, visit the classics website. Great subject for discussion, and very important to engage the himanities with the study of medicine and vice versa.