Health Communication and the Medical Humanities: A Case-Based Learning Approach

Drawing upon actual case studies, this book introduces readers to how everyday interactions in the clinic can foster trust and impact diagnoses and reveals how often-overlooked communication processes fundamentally shape healthcare delivery and outcomes. The book treats communication not as a box to be checked or a skill to be mastered, but as a force that shapes provider and patient identities, a broker of relationships, and a central and pervasive presence in all systems of care.It explores topics such as end-of-life communication, physician burnout, professional hierarchies within healthcare teams, and AI in healthcare.It also integrates examples that extend beyond a U.S. framework, accounting for how different healthcare and political systems impact patient care.Each chapter is written in plain language and invites readers to think critically about what true patient-centered care looks like today. This book is tailored to both undergraduate and graduate medical humanities, health c