International Health Humanities Network Membership

Lora Arduser is an assistant professor in medical communication and rhetoric at the University of Cincinnati in Cincinnati, OH, USA. She has published and presented on topics in medicine, narrative, and agency. She is also interested the relationship between language and Internet use, with a focus on online patient communities, digital narratives and genres, and Internet-based research. 

I am a dually qualified mental health professional (RMN and DipSW) with many years experience. For example, I have worked as a staff nurse for Leicestershire Health Authority, as a social worker for Warwickshire County Council and for ten years as a team leader and dementia specialist for Anchor Trust. In addition, after completing a PhD and an ESRC Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Social Gerontology, I have worked as a researcher on individual and team based projects at various universities, especially in the areas of older age and mental health, these projects have included:

The evaluation of an art for health intervention involving the provision of instruction in painting and drawing to community groups identified as being vulnerable to developing mental health problems http://www.emeraldinsight.com/journals.htm?articleid=1519896&show=abstract

The evaluation of a musical intervention for people with dementia called 'Soundtrack to My Life'.

The evaluation of a theatrical event called 'Inside Out of Mind', an innovative project aiming to seek engagement from health care assistants and other care workers, helping them to find effective new and meaningful ways of enhancing the care of people with dementia.

Most recently, I have been working as a senior research fellow at the University of Nottingham on a project called 'Clay Transformations' (www.claytransformations.info).  This is part of a larger programme called 'Creative Practice as Mutual Recovery: Connecting Communities for Mental Health and Wellbeing' which is funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council.  

He is graduated in piano; degree in Psychology and PhD in Psychology with a thesis entitled "The construction of professional identity in cultural settings." He has a Master in Human Resource Management, a Master of Advanced Studies in Brain and Behavior and a Master in Organizational Psychology and Work at the University of Seville.

He has been Fellow as predoctoral researcher and assistant professor in the Department of Experimental Psychology at the University of Seville, where he has taught Psychology of Thought and Language, Psychology of Attention and Perception and Psychology of Communication and Culture. He has experience in managing the development of human resources in local and multinational companies and collaborates with the Association of relatives of people with serious mental illness.

He has published several articles and book chapters and presented his work at numerous national and international conferences. Currently he is an assistant professor at the University Pablo de Olavide in Seville and has research in different topics such as autobiographical memory, Culture, Health and Work Activity.

I'm a family medicine physician in the US with an advanced degree in medical education (MHPE) from the University of Illinois College of Medicine in Chicago where I focused on medical humanities specifically the pedagogy of Literature and Medicine, or Narrative Medicine.  I was provleiged to be taught and mentored by , among others, Suzanne Poirier, Rita Charon, Kathryn Montgomery, and Catherine Belling.   My professional experience includes the design and implementation of courses for medical students an residents which have been evaluated positively.  I've presented my research at national and international meetings and have published in international peer reviewed medical journals.  I've been building my depth and range of expertise in medical/health humanities scholarship for the last 10 years.  I live in Chicago, and am an avid classical musician, in addition to my work as a physician and educator.  

Susan Arjmand , M.D. is an Assistant Professor of Family Medicine at Rush Medical College in Chicago, Il and an adjunct lecturer in the Department of Medical Education at the University of Illinois College of Medicine where she received her MHPE degree (Master’s in Health Professions’ Education) where she was mentored by Suzanne Poirier. Her thesis research focused on  Narrative Medicine and Literature and Medicine. In addition to Rush, Dr. Arjmand has taught medical students and residents at Stroger Hospital of Cook County, Loyola Stritch School of Medicine, Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine, and the University of Illinois College of Medicine. Dr. Arjmand’s writing has appeared in the Journal of Family Medicine, JAMA, Academic Medicine, Journal of Learning Through the Arts and Keeping Reflection Fresh; A Practical Guide for Clinical Educators. An avid classical musician, Dr Arjmand has many professional relationships and collaborations among professional performing arts organizations in Chicago, Il and is the founder of the Student Faculty Classical Recital at Rush Medical College

Sara Ascenso holds a Licentiate degree in clinical psychology from the University of Lisbon, a BMus in piano performance from the National Superior Orchestra Academy of the Metropolitan Orchestra of Lisbon, and an MSc in Performance Science from the Royal College of Music where she is currently a Doctoral student at the Centre for Performance Science (RCM/Imperial College London) focusing on musicians’ mental health. Before starting her PhD research, Sara maintained regular professional activity both as a psychologist in clinical settings and within diverse educational projects and as a collaborative pianist and piano teacher.

Dimitrinka’s background is in media research. She worked as Media Consultant before starting her PhD and studied the (online) news framing of obesity in her doctoral research. During her PhD she was Graduate Research Assistant and contributed to various social science and humanities projects using applied linguistics and media analysis methods and frameworks.

Dr Sarah Atkins is a post-doctoral Research Fellow in the School of English, University of Nottingham, funded by and Economic and Social Research Council 'Future Research Leaders' grant. Her work investigates language and professional communication, primarily in healthcare settings, with an emphasis on applying findings into practice. She has conducted research with the Royal College of General Practitioners and emergency care providers, looking at how communication skills are assessed through the use of simulation.

Student at the University of Nottingham studying for BA (Hons) Philosophy. I have particular interest in the history and philosophy of illness, pain and healthcare, bioethics, medical humanities and narrative medicine. I hope to pursue postgraduate study upon completion of my undergraduate degree. 

I trained as a sculptor, then as an Art Psychotherapist and have practiced as an art Psychotherapist for 25 years working with young people with mental health emotional and bahavioural problems in secure care. I am one of Tea, a collective of four, now three artists who work together on public art projects.(www.teaweb.org ). I am very interested in all the arts and their capacity to express and contain the human condition. I am fighting to keep the arts and the arts therapies alive in the units where I work against the increasing persecution of the medical model.