title: Doctors as Makers.
abstract: Traditional skills and expertise are not enough to prepare future physicians for the complexity, instability, and uncertainty of clinical practice. Responding and making meaning from ill-defined or unusual problems calls for, even demands, creativity. In this article, the author suggests expanding the traditional role of doctor as science-using, evidence-based practitioner to include that of doctor as a "maker" (creator) and artist. Such a reimagining requires a shift in how we view medical knowledge and patients' stories, as well as a new appreciation for "not-knowing" as a generative, creative space in medicine. Creative thinking deserves a central place in the training of doctors, driven by a reconceptualization of the traditional educational model to include medical disciplines, humanities scholars, artists, and designers.
authors.affiliation: J.M. Baruch is associate professor, Department of Emergency Medicine, Alpert Medical School at Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island.
authors.forename: Jay M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Baruch
mesh_terms: D003405:Creativity; D006809:Humanities; D006801:Humans; D019359:Knowledge; D008511:Medicine; D010820:Physicians