The last forty years or so has seen a general turn to nonfictional autobiographical writing. The medical humanities have embraced this surge for their sensitive and expansive accounts of illness. But relatively little work tracks a similar growth in the doctor memoir. For this section of the project, led by our Engaged Research Fellow Dr Arthur Rose, we will be looking at the development of the doctor memoir from the late 20th Century to the present, paying particular attention to the ways that they narrate events often associated with shameful feelings and shaming practices. By isolating and elaborating on the representation of patient, professional and learner experiences, these memoirs can help us to address the shaping effects of shame in medical practice.
