The 2024 Dr. Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest in now open! Medical and nursing students are invited to submit an essay that illustrates an experience of humanistic care to the 25th annual Dr. Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest.
Using the following quote, reflect on an experience in any healthcare setting where you or another healthcare team member worked to put the person at the center of care: “The practice of medicine is an art, not a trade; a calling, not a business; a calling in which your heart will be exercised equally with your head.” — William Osler
Six winners (three medical students and three nursing students) will receive a monetary award ($1,000 for first place, $500 for second place, and $250 for third place). Their essays will be published in Academic Medicine, the journal of the Association of American Medical Colleges, and The Journal of Professional Nursing, of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing.
Deadline: Wednesday, March 13, 11:59pm P.T. (March 14, 1:59am CST)
About Dr. Hope Babette Tang
The essay contest is named in honor of Hope Babette Tang, MD, an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center from 1992 until her death in 1998. Her last position was Pediatric Medical Director of the hospital’s HIV clinic. Dr. Tang’s devotion and generosity to the care of the children and infants with HIV infection in New York City was an inspiration to her colleagues and her students. Her approach to medicine combined a boundless enthusiasm for her work, intellectual rigor, and deep compassion for her patients. In sum, Dr. Tang was an exemplar of humanistic care, and we continue to hear stories to this day about her grace, kindness, and humility.
Essay Contest Details
Participants in the Dr. Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest engage in a reflective writing exercise to describe an experience where they or a team member worked to ensure that humanism was at the core of care. Submissions that touch upon students’ personal experiences of humanistic care or stories of family and friends will also be accepted. Essays should be 1,000 words or fewer.
Judges will be looking for essays that connect strongly to the Gold Foundation’s mission of humanism in healthcare for all. Winning essays will illuminate how the human connection can make a meaningful difference in care.
The essay contest is open to medical students at accredited schools of medicine in the U.S. and Canada, and nursing students at AACN member schools. Students at international medical schools that have a Gold Humanism Honor Society (GHHS) chapter are also eligible. For more information on contest rules and eligibility, please visit our website.
This post was authored by Academic Affairs on 02/12/2024.