For many health professionals, treating patients is a matter of assessing their ailments, making a diagnosis and prescribing treatment where it is required. Then it is on to the next patient. But a new program in VA medical centers aims to make connections between medical professionals and their patients through narratives.
The Charles George VA hospital in Asheville, NC, is one of the locations of the program called “My Life, My Story.” World War II veterans tell their stories to a staff writer who condenses their narratives. The resulting document becomes part of the medical chart and can be accessed by doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers.
Host Frank Stasio talks with Jay Price, WUNC military reporter, about the program. He also speaks with Melanie McConnell, writer for the Asheville VA, and Dorothy Managan, a veteran participant in the program. Stasio also talks with Dr. Terrence Holt, physician and author who directs UNC’s Literature, Medicine and Culture masters program, and John Howell, National Guard member and co-facilitator of the NC Vets for Words program, a literature discussion initiative by the NC Humanities Council.
