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Medicine is a continuously advancing science, characterized by the integration of multiple disciplines, ultimately focusing on the "human" aspect. Over the past half-century, there has been a global surge in efforts to reshape the humanistic spirit of medicine. Narrative medicine, a field that highly integrates medical professionalism with universal humanistic values, has developed rapidly in China from scratch over the past decade or so. This article introduces the development of narrative medicine both domestically and internationally, explains how to correctly understand the connotation of China's narrative medicine system and the significance of practicing narrative medicine. It analyzes current challenges in clinical practice, education and teaching, scientific research, doctor-patient consensus, and social recognition. Furthermore, it proposes directions for effort, namely, in the context of "greater health" and "new medical science", narrative medicine is empowered to help construct a harmonious medical narrative ecosystem, promote high-quality development in pediatrics, contribute to the innovation in medical education and talent training with humanistic strength and wisdom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Narrative medicine is a multidisciplinary field of inquiry and practice based on the premise that medical care takes place in the context of stories. Research on narrative medicine training suggests that it conveys benefits such as improved communication skills and personal and professional growth to physicians, medical students, and other health care providers. Narrative medicine can promote empathy and trust between patients and physicians and foster self-care. In 2014, the author and a colleague started an ongoing inter-disciplinary narrative medicine program in the Children's Center of the Johns Hopkins Hospital called AfterWards. The program, which meets monthly, is open to all on a volunteer basis. Through literature, art, and writing, AfterWards nurtures empathy, encourages reflective practice, and builds community among a diverse group of health care providers. Through a series of lectures and workshops at Johns Hopkins Medicine, Peking Union Medical College, and Fudan Hospital in Shanghai, the author has introduced AfterWards to Chinese medical educators and clinicians. Working with Dr. Marta Hanson, she created an AfterWards Facilitator's Guide for the use of Chinese practitioners. A recent White Paper on Chinese health care indicates that an infusion of humanities-based education, of which narrative medicine forms a part, can help rebuild patient-physician trust. Recently, there has been an increase in interest in narrative medicine in the United States and China. However, more research is needed to demonstrate the impact of programs like AfterWards. Challenges to the implementation of narrative medicine programs remain, most significantly in terms of expertise, resources, and time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper sketches the history and the author's involvement in the development of narrative medicine in China. It also describes "narrative medicine with Chinese characteristics," explaining why narrative medicine is regarded as a tool to materialize the medical humanities in clinical practice, and detailing the features of narrative medicine in China. The features include the wide acceptance of the "22334 model" of narrative medicine, and borrowing theories and practice from Traditional Chinese Medicine. Finally, the author argues that the medical humanities should be given a "Class-A discipline" status, and narrative medicine should be a class-B discipline under the medical humanities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Starting from the inheritance and promotion of Chinese life philosophy and traditional Chinese medicine wisdom by Chinese narrative medicine practice, this paper discusses the inheritance and echo relationship between the "close textual reading ability" in Chinese narrative medicine practice and the "four diagnoses" in traditional Chinese medicine wisdom, narrative mediation and the "mind-body holistic philosophy" in traditional Chinese medicine, and narrative wisdom and Dao Sheng in Chinese life philosophy. Meanwhile, by analyzing the stories of contemporary doctors' practice of narrative intelligence, this paper expounds that Chinese narrative medicine is a new model of medical education and clinical practice based on the absorption of Chinese traditional life wisdom and the essence of traditional Chinese medicine culture, and the integration of western narrative medicine concepts. It also advocates Chinese scholars to actively build the discipline of "narrative traditional Chinese medicine," constantly translate the academic achievements to foreign countries, and create a good narrative ecology of traditional Chinese medicine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When narrative medicine (NM) was introduced into China, traditional Chinese medicine scholars found that the core concepts advocated by NM are manifested in Chinese yi'an. But why NM echoes with ancient Chinese yi'an? How can we better integrate NM into Chinese medical practices? To answer those questions, this article first investigates how NM establishes itself as a remedy to biomedicine by taking traditional healing models including TCM as its ideal Other. Then, the narrative traditions of both case histories and yi'an are examined respectively. This article argues that NM is searching for a lost tradition of narrative case histories, but yi'an functions as a living tradition of TCM. The Parallel Chart in NM, designed as a complement to the dehumanized hospital chart, is still based on a dichotomy of science and art and a conflictual doctor-patient model. But yi'an exemplifies the holistic and humane healthcare that NM hopes to achieve. A comparison of both genres also inspired us to rethink the genre of yi'an in NM. Thus, it is concluded that yi'an should be viewed as an epistemic genre integrating individualization and generalization, a bridge linking medicine and literature. And narrative yi'an can well serve as a tool for NM in China. It is also proposed that a thick description of yi'an be encouraged to further promote a pluralistic NM in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context • Chronic renal failure (CRF) is the outcome of the continuous progression of various chronic kidney diseases. Effective treatment of a wide range of diseases may require decreasing patients’ negative emotions and enhancing their disease resilience. Narrative care focuses on patients’ inner awareness, feelings, and experience of a disease, stimulating positive energy in the face of it. Objective • The study intended to investigate the effects of using narrative care during high flux hemodialysis (HFHD) on clinical outcomes and prognosis of quality of life (QoL) for patients with chronic renal failure (CRF), to provide a reliable theoretical reference for future clinical treatment. Design • The research team performed a randomized controlled trial. Setting • The study took place at the Blood Purification Center at the Affiliated Hospital of Medical School at Ningbo University in Ningbo, Zhejiang, China. Participants • Participants were 78 patients with CRF who received treat with HFHD at the hospital between January 2021 and August 2022. Intervention • The research team divided participants into two groups using the random number table method, with 39 participants in each group: (1) and intervention group who received narrative nursing care and (2) a control group who receive the usual care. Outcome Measures • The research team: (1) evaluated the clinical efficacy for both groups; (2) at baseline and postintervention, measured participants’ blood creatinine (SCr) and blood urea nitrogen (BUN) using blood sampling; (3) counted adverse effects; (4) investigated participants’ nursing satisfaction postintervention; (5) at baseline and postintervention, assessed psychology and QoL using the Self-Assessment Scale for Anxiety (SAS), the Self-Assessment Scale for Depression (SDS), and the General Quality of Life Inventory (GQOLI-74) scale. Results • No statistically significant differences existed between the groups in terms of efficacy or renal function postintervention (P>.05). The incidence of adverse reactions was significantly lower in the intervention group than in the control group postintervention (P = .033), and the group’s nursing satisfaction was significantly higher (P = .042). In addition, participants’ SAS and SDS scores decreased significantly in the intervention group postintervention (P < .05), while no change occurred for the control group (P>.05). Finally, the GQOLI-74 scores were all significantly higher in the intervention group than in the control group. Conclusions • Narrative care can effectively enhance the safety of HFHD treatment in CRF patients and reduce patients’ negative emotions postintervention, which is important for improving their QoL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To explore the current status of clinical nurses' narrative medicine (NM) ability and its related influencing factors, so as to provide a theoretical basis for nursing managers to develop targeted nurse training programmes., Design: A cross-sectional study., Setting: A total of 1792 clinical nurses from eight medical institutions in Hunan province were selected as participants using convenience sampling., Main Outcome Measures: Online questionnaires were employed to collect general data, NM competence scores, empathy ability scores and personality trait scores from the participants., Participants: A total of 1820 questionnaires were collected, with 28 deemed invalid due to contradictory responses. The final dataset included 1792 valid questionnaires, resulting in a valid recovery rate of 98.5%., Results: The total NM competence score averaged at 153.37±18.34. Marital status, having children, hospital grade, empathy ability score and challenges faced in carrying out NM were identified as influential factors through multiple linear regression (p<0.01). These factors collectively explained 71.9% of the total variation in the NM competence of clinical nurses., Conclusion: Clinical nurses in this study demonstrate an intermediate level of NM competence. Marital status, having children, hospital grade, empathy ability score and challenges in carrying out NM emerge as the primary factors affecting NM competence among nurses. The findings suggest that nursing managers should implement targeted measures to improve the NM competence of clinical nurses, thereby fostering their professional growth., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2025. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ Group.)

Background: Narrative medicine was introduced in China in 2011 and has been applied as a tool for humane medical practice. The prominent problem in the narrative medicine is the lack of adequate attention and devotion. This study aimed to investigate Chinese medical staffs' narrative competence and the influencing factors, confirming whether the level of narrative competence is different in different hospital settings., Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 1003 medical staffs, including 201 from Children's hospital and 802 from the General hospital. The participants were scored based on the Chinese narrative competence scale, a brief Chinese version of the resilience scale, and a Chinese version of the self-efficacy scale. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS version 25.0., Results: A total of 1003 medical staff from Children's hospital and General hospital participated in the survey, with a response rate of 94.36%. Our results showed that the score of narrative competence of General hospital and Children's hospital was 149.45±26.22 and 147.10±18.87, respectively, both of which were in intermediate level. Resilience, familiarity with narrative medicine were influencing factors of narrative competence in 2 kinds of hospitals, and whether having written parallel charts before were the influencing factors of narrative competence in General hospital. Besides, our study found that the level of narrative competence (χ2 = 13.672, p≤0.001), resilience score (personal ability dimension, t = 3.439, p≤0.001) and self-efficacy (t = 1.976, p<0.005) are different between General and Children's hospital., Conclusions: Narrative competence is different between General hospital and Children's hospital. Medical staff in General hospital are more familiar with narrative medicine. The competence of medical staff in China needs to be improved., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2024 Jia et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Background. Narrative medicine has been applied as a model for humane medical practice in many countries. However, it was not introduced in China until 2011 and there has been no standardized assessment of Chinese medical personnel regarding their perception and application of narrative medicine-related theories. This study is aimed at investigating Chinese medical personnel's knowledge, attitude, and practice regarding narrative medicine and the factors that influence it. Methods. An online questionnaire based on the knowledge, attitude, and practice model was distributed among Chinese medical personnel from December 2021 to March 2022. All in-service medical personnel across China who had access to the Internet were eligible. Two independent samples t -tests, one-way analysis of variance, Pearson's correlation analysis, and multivariate linear regression were conducted for data analyses. Results. The participants' scoring rates for knowledge, attitude, and practice were 49.62%, 47.18%, and 41.43%, respectively. Significant influencing factors for knowledge were education level, religious belief, professional role, title, working years, and institution categories; those for attitude were education level, religious belief, professional role, and working years; and those for practice were professional title, religious belief, working years, and institution categories. Conclusions. Chinese medical personnel have generally good knowledge of, attitudes towards, and practice of narrative medicine; however, there remain deficiencies in their understanding of certain important concepts, their attitude towards narrative medicine, and the application of narrative skills in their daily work. Thus, to improve narrative medicine practice in China, the application of strategies based on theoretical, educational, and institutional aspects is warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a new, highly infective virus. In the absence of specific vaccines and antiviral drugs, the China National Health Commission has released a series of COVID-19 treatment guidelines, which include symptomatic treatment, antiviral treatment, and traditional Chinese medicines (TCM). Aim of the review To analyze and summarize the role of TCMs in the treatment of COVID-19. Methods Relevant studies on TCMs related to the study aim were undertaken through a literature search to synthesize the extracted data. Results The China National Health Commission guidelines recommend 15 oral and injectable TCMs for COVID-19. Studies on TCMs have demonstrated that these compounds possess broad-spectrum antiviral and antibacterial properties, and they have certain advantages in the treatment of viral pneumonia and other emergent infectious diseases. Many TCMs also have potent anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects. Treatment based on syndrome differentiation is one of the significant features in TCM. TCM compounds contain a variety of active ingredients that have proven multi-target effects, making it difficult for viruses to develop drug resistance. A variety of clinical pathways are involved in the actions of these TCMs. These properties allow TCMs to be used in the treatment of COVID-19. Conclusion TCMs have been widely used in the treatment of COVID-19 in China. The unique properties of TCM compounds allow TCMs to have a role in the management of COVID-19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective To explore the effect of psychological nursing combined with externalized narrative therapy on the physical and mental rehabilitation of patients with schizophrenia. Methods 103 patients with schizophrenia admitted to the Fourth People's Hospital of Shantou from June 2019 to Mach 2020 were selected as the research objects. Using random number table method, the patients were divided into an observation group (n =52) and a control group (n =51). The control group received conventional rehabilitation nursing intervention, and the observation group received psychological nursing combined with externalized narrative therapy. The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) scores, Schizophrenia Quality of Life Scale (SQLS) scores, Social Support Rating Scale (SSRS) scores, and Stigma Scale for Mental Illness (SSMI-C) scores before and after intervention were compared between two groups. Results After intervention, the PANSS scores, SQLS scores and SSMI-C scores of the observation group were significantly lower than those of the control group (all P <0. 05), and the SSRS scores were significantly higher than those of the control group (ah P <0. 05). Conclusion Psychological nursing combined with externalized narrative therapy can effectively alleviate the mental symptoms of patients with schizophrenia, reduce their stigma, and improve their social support and quality of life, which is worthy of promotion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Medical professionals in China are increasingly interested and eager to engage in Narrative Medicine. The power of narrative to facilitate medical practices with its competence in the recognition, interpretation, and reconstruction of illness stories is being widely welcomed by physicians to better understand their profession and to cope with the ever-changing work environment. This article examines medical narratives on aspects of the working life in medicine and analyses how physicians' self-reflective writings reshape their outlook upon the ideas of illness, their relationships with others involved in the medical process, and their identity as doctors for the larger community. Contemporary Chinese doctors embrace Narrative Medicine but with variations closely linked to culturally specific customs and concepts. The act of writing about oneself helps to create for medical care providers a context in which science and humanity, past and present, and the individual and his/ her community are all interrelated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since narrative medicine was introduced in China, it has been widely used in medical education and clinical practice. The research on narrative medicine in China is especially characterized by its combination with traditional Chinese medicine(TCM). At present, the research on narrative medicine in China is still in the stage of small-scale practicing and theory advocating. Besides, there is also a lack of guidance on experimental design methodology for clinical application, which leads to few high-quality studies in this field. The present study reviewed the current high-quality research on narrative medicine to discuss the value and prospects of mixed methods research in narrative medicine. In addition, the common design, application procedures, and notes of mixed methods research were explained to provide references for the extensive applications of narrative medicine in the medical field, especially TCM clinical practice, education, and scientific research.

Objective To determine the effectiveness of a narrative medicine educational intervention on the empathic abilities and academic achievement of Chinese nursing students. Methods A cluster randomised controlled trial was conducted between January 2015 and July 2017. Six class clusters (two controls, four interventions) comprising 180 nursing students were included in this trial. After pre-tests to obtain baseline measurements, two control classes (Group 1) attended regular medical education courses, two intervention classes (Group 2) received theoretical narrative medicine education for 1 term, and two intervention classes (Group 3) received narrative medicine education that integrated theory with practice for 2 terms. The empathic ability and academic achievement of the groups were compared, and longitudinal changes in empathic ability were measured. Results Students in Group 3 showed higher empathic ability and academic achievement than students in Group 1. Empathic ability was measured at six time points and showed between-group differences. The empathy scores of students in Group 3 increased abruptly after the two-term intervention. Conclusions Narrative medicine education that combines theory with practice is an effective strategy for improving nursing students' empathic ability and academic achievement.