“Where is the spleen? Where are the lungs?”—An investigation of the level of anatomical knowledge of the Hong Kong public

Anatomy has been integral to medical and health education for centuries, it has also had a significant role in wider public life, as an educational resource, a link to their health, and also as a darker deterrent. Historically, public engagement in anatomy is hallmarked by public dissections of convicted criminals across the globe. Artists, specifically non‐medical men, such as Leonardo da Vinci, are reported to have participated in public dissection. Dissection would later rekindle public interest in anatomy as graverobbing led to the reform and regulation of anatomy in many countries. In recent years, there has been growing interest from the public in learning more about their bodies as health and well‐being become of paramount importance, particularly following the COVID‐19 pandemic. Anatomy sits in a prime position to direct and instigate conversations around health, well‐being, and body image. Every human on earth possesses a perfect resource to look at and learn about. Models, art‐based anatomical activities, and crafts provide active learning opportunities for the wider public around anatomy. Most recently, apps, games, and extended reality provide novel and insightful learning opportunities for the public relating to the body. Finally, training and resources must also be made available from institutions and professional bodies to anatomists to enable them to deliver engagement in an already congested and educationally heavy schedule. This resurgence of interest in anatomical public engagement sees anatomy re‐enter the public spotlight, with more appropriate resources and educational settings to offer engagement with the aim of benefiting the public.

Section: What Is the Anatomical Knowledge Of Patients And The Public?supporting

confidence: 83%

Section: What Is the Anatomic Al Knowledg E Of Patients And The Pub L...supporting

confidence: 80%

“Spine to the future”—A narrative review of anatomy engagement

Taylor,

Wessels

2024

Personalization above anonymization? A role for considering the humanity and spirituality of the dead in anatomical education

Lazarus,

Douglas,

Stephens

2024

Clinical anatomy education is meant to prepare students for caring for the living, often by working with the dead. By their nature many clinical anatomy education programs privilege topographical form over the donor's humanity. This inbalance between the living and the dead generates tensions between the tangible and the spiritual insofar as semblances of the humanity of donors endure even in depictions and derivatives. This article argues that considering the relevance of spirituality, and what endures of a donor's humanity after death, would enhance contemporary anatomy education and the ethical treatment of human body donors (and derivatives). In developing this argument, we (the authors) address the historical connection between spirituality and anatomy, including the anatomical locations of the soul. This serves as a basis for examining the role of the mimetic—or imitative—potential of deceased human donors as representations of the living. We deliberate on the ways in which the depersonalization and anonymization of those donating challenge the mimetic purpose of human body donors and the extent to which such practices are misaligned with the health care shift from a biomedical to a biopsychosocial model. Weighing up the risks and opportunities of anonymization versus personalization of human body donors, we propose curricula that could serve to enhance the personalization of human donors to support students learning topographical form. In doing so, we argue that the personalization of human donors and depictions could prevent the ill effects of digital representations going “viral,” and enhance opportunities for donors to help the general public learn more about the human form.

Anatomy outreach: A conceptual model of shared purposes and processes

Dueñas,

Tiffin,

Finn

2024

Anatomy outreach is a well‐documented practice by many academic institutions, defined here as when anatomy‐related services are provided to external communities. However, most of the current literature on this topic is largely descriptive, focusing on the ‘what’ of anatomy‐related outreach, rather than the generalizable ‘why’ or ‘how’. There exists no shared conceptual model of what anatomy outreach tries to achieve from the perspective of ‘outreachers’, and how anatomists support these goals. Thus, this study aimed to explore the comprehension of anatomy outreach as a social phenomenon in the anatomy education community. This qualitative research used constructivist grounded theory to explore the perspectives of anatomists with experience facilitating anatomy outreach. A total of 18 participants completed semi‐structured interviews. Analysis resulted in the construction of nine broad categories of themes relating to anatomy outreach: types of outreach, specific activities, goals of outreach, subject benefit (why anatomy?), enablers, challenges, appraisal, motivators/drivers, and community perspectives from the immediate anatomy community and wider field (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) and health professions education (HPE)). These results were constructed into a conceptual model of anatomy outreach. The findings suggest that anatomists view the subject matter as a socially connecting experience that can engage a wide variety of individuals. The multimodal nature of anatomy, combined with teaching expertise, lends well to productive outreach. Most ‘outreachers’ do not have a strong understanding of the impact of their activities, however, and operate on a level of optimism that activities will support diversity, belonging, and health/anatomical literacy.