I have been honored to teach cadaver anatomy for 30 years. I understand that not all health care educational programs have the resources to use human cadavers and that computerized anatomical software can be effective for learning human anatomy. However, beyond the learning of anatomical and other clinical sciences in health professional education, there is an important need to learn and continually reflect on the humanism that forms the core of health care. Although there are many ways to address humanism in health care education, research and practice, experiencing cadaver anatomy as a foundational starting point is a treasure that needs to be preserved and promoted wherever possible.
In Dr. Jim Carey’s poem, Cadaver Anatomy – Absorbing Humanity, his words urge us to look beyond the scholarship and past the muscles and ligaments to the person and life that once lived within the body: “Past your science / Past our machinery / Seize our stories / Uphold our soul” so that, “In awe, we learn anatomy / Higher, we learn humanity.”