This presentation examines the intersection of literature, narrative medicine, and healthcare practices in addressing obstetric and gynecological violence. It highlights how French literature and social media platforms have shed light on these systemic issues, offering narratives that demand recognition and challenge patriarchal medical practices. In particular, the analysis underscores how storytelling serves as a site of resistance and awareness. The presentation also explores the application of narrative medicine to educate healthcare professionals and to foster empathy, decenter power dynamics, and address biases in patient care. By bridging the humanities and medical education, this presentation proposes narrative medicine as a transformative tool to challenge systemic inequalities and enhance care for marginalized groups, particularly women.

Presented by Loïc Bourdeau, professor of French studies and the medical humanities, at National University of Ireland, Maynooth

Co-Sponsored by Department of Romance Languages and Literatures (ROLA); Robert H.N. Ho Mind, Brain, and Behavior Initiative (MBBI); and Global Public and Environmental Health Program (GPEH).

Refreshments provided.