معرفی
Katarina Bernhardsson is an Associate Professor in Literary Studies at Lund University's Centre for Languages and Literature (SOL), with a specialized focus on Medical Humanities. She serves as assistant director of the Birgit Rausing Centre for Medical Humanities (BRCMH) and coordinates Medical Humanities education at Lund's Medical Faculty, where she teaches, supervises degree theses, and develops innovative humanities integration within medical education. Her interdisciplinary work bridges literary scholarship with medical practice through narrative medicine approaches.
Her educational background includes a Ph.D. from Lund University (2010) with the dissertation 'Litterära besvär. Skildringar av sjukdom i samtida svensk prosa' (Literary Ills. Portrayals of Illness in Contemporary Swedish Fiction), along with academic experiences at Brown University and Cornell University. She has held progressively senior positions culminating in her 2020 appointment as Associate Professor.
Bernhardsson's research centers on the intersection of literature and medicine, with particular expertise in illness narratives, pathographies, and narrative medicine. Her work demonstrates how literary analysis can enhance medical education and practice, contributing significantly to establishing Medical Humanities as a discipline in Sweden. She has developed specialized courses including the 'Medicine as a Humanities' broadening course and has coordinated Medical Humanities teaching for 15 years at Lund's medical program.
Her recent publications reveal a consistent focus on narrative approaches to healthcare, examining topics from shared reading interventions for wellbeing to the long-term impacts of humanities education on medical students. The research demonstrates interdisciplinary collaboration across medical, literary, and psychological domains with practical applications for healthcare education and practice.
- Kungl. Humanistiska Vetenskapssamfundets Jubileumspris 2023
- Kungl. fysiografiska sällskapet (2022)
- Vetenskapssocieteten i Lund (2020)
- Hainska priset (2012 and 2011)
Bernhardsson supervises Master's theses in the Medical Program and provides PhD-level supervision in both medical humanities and literary studies. She coordinates the 'Nordic Network for Narratives and Medicine' and participates in multiple research projects including 'Storytelling - from cell to society' and 'The Epione Project.' Her leadership extends to establishing the first Medical Humanities position in Sweden in 2017 and building foundational structures for humanities integration in medical education.
As assistant director of the Birgit Rausing Centre for Medical Humanities, she leads initiatives connecting literary scholarship with medical practice. She coordinates the 'Reading and Health' study group and is an educated leader in shared reading methodologies, demonstrating her commitment to translating humanities research into practical healthcare applications through her work with the Centre and various collaborative networks.
