Burnett School of Medicine at TCU Students Honor Donors at Gratitude Ceremony
First-year medical students at the Anne Burnett Marion School of Medicine at Texas Christian University honor donors and their families who gave one of the most generous gifts to train the next generation of physicians.
FORT WORTH – Using art and reflection, first-year medical students honored those who donated their bodies to their anatomy course.
“The anatomy lab takes education from the books to the people in a very personal way,” said Aubri Robinson, MS-1. “It is so humbling to be the person who gets to stand at the table and learn through someone else’s gift.”
The Gratitude Ceremony marks a new tradition for the Anne Burnett Marion School of Medicine at Texas Christian University. Students showed their gratitude through artistic expression and group reflection: Robinson, MS-1, read an original poem she wrote for the ceremony titled “Breath of Life;” Johnathan Forkey, MS-1, read from Psalms; and Matthew Bao, MS-1, delivered a vocal performance of “Danny Boy.”
“The Gratitude Ceremony was an opportunity for the students to share their thankfulness for the individuals who donated,” said Heather Hale, Director of Humanities and Communication at the Burnett School of Medicine.
Events like this highlight how the Burnett School of Medicine is training the next generation of doctors to learn compassion alongside science.
“I think our students choose our medical school because of our mission to create Empathetic Scholars®,” said Mitzi Glover, PhD, Director of the Anatomy Lab at the Burnett School of Medicine. “They are committed to becoming compassionate physicians and the anatomy lab helps deepen that commitment for them.”
The ceremony allowed the students to reflect on their time in the anatomy lab where they attained the skills they’ll apply as physicians as well as a better understanding of what it means to care for another person.
“Being able to learn from a donor and see the beautiful design of a human body is the foundation of how I’m going to learn to care for patients,” said Kate Myers, MS-1, who provided the closing remarks for the ceremony. “Knowing that someone’s family and a patient wanted to do something so intimate for the next generation of physicians is very special.”