Wednesday, 30 January 2013
12:30 -1:30 pm
Jordan Conference Center Auditorium
University of Virginia School of Medicine
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John F. Anderson Memorial Lecture
A Playwright Takes on
Medical Malpractice and Forgiveness
Deborah Salem Smith MFA, Playwright-in-Residence, Trinity Repertory Company, Providence RI
Actors, Department of Drama, UVA
Margaret Plews-Ogan MD, Associate Professor of Medicine and Head, Division of General Medicine, Geriatrics, and Palliative Care, UVA
Deborah Salem Smith’s acclaimed play Love Alone is the story of what happens after a routine medical procedure goes tragically wrong. A medical malpractice lawsuit ensues, and the lives of both the patient’s family and the doctor charged with her care are transformed. The play tracks the fallout in both homes—it is a portrait of how each family grieves and heals.
These questions were central in the construction of the plot:
· Is forgiveness a single act or a daily act? Is it unconditional?
· Who has the right to forgive? Does forgiveness require remorse or an apology by the offender?
· Do lawsuits empower victims and thus aid the grieving process, or do they disrupt grieving? Does proving negligence make a victim more prepared to forgive?
· What does a lawsuit mean for the doctor sued—and for his or her personal journey of recovering from the unexpected death of a patient?
· George Bernard Shaw famously quipped: “We have not lost faith, but we have transferred it from God to the medical profession.” What are the implications and burdens of such faith?
This Medical Center Hour explores Love Alone with the playwright and local actors but also with a physician who has written on doctors’ efforts to deal with their own mistakes.
Special program: Wednesday, 30 January, 5:30-8:00 pm, Culbreth Theatre, UVA
A STAGED READING OF LOVE ALONE
Co-presented by the Department of Drama and the Medical Center Hour
(Free and open to the public. Free parking in Culbreth Rd Parking Garage)
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This program is free and open to the entire university and the public. Health professionals who attend may apply for continuing education credit. Medical Center Hour counts toward first-year medical students’ SIM requirements.
The Medical Center Hour is produced weekly throughout the academic year by the Center for Biomedical Ethics and Humanities of the University of Virginia School of Medicine. Our series includes History of the Health Sciences Lectures, which we produce together with Historical Collections in the Claude Moore Health Sciences Library.
For information, call 434.924.5974 or see
