Art Observation and Visualisation Advances Medical Learning and Clinical Proficiency

Abstract

In the field of medicine, art and visualisation has influenced the progression of medical education, practice and research from the early renaissance to now. This interdisciplinary dissertation aims to explore these contributions to medicine and suggest appropriate inclusions of art visualisation within medical practice and research. These contributions additionally suggest innovations in pedagogy for medical education that is partly interdisciplinary through an inclusion of valuable artistic methods and visualisation practice.  

The practice of visualising can make information easier to understand (Agosti et al., 2013) and improve observational skills (Dolev, Friedlaender and Braverman, 2001). Therefore, historically and up to the present day, the use of visuals has aided medical understanding and the formation of improved clinical proficiency. The information in this dissertation demonstrates firstly how art observation and in more recent years, artistic methods in medical curricula, have directly increased anatomical learning. Then there will be a demonstration of how artistic study can improve observational skills that are essential for effective clinical practice. Finally, discussions will explore how both technological visualisation and science art have progressed many aspects of medical learning including wider public engagement. Consequently, this dissertation argues that art and visualisation techniques have considerable potential and value within modern medical pedagogy.