Poet, educator, and artist Laura Hope-Gill talks with NM Senior Writer and Storyteller Ellen Piligian about creative imagination, teaching healthcare professionals, and the stories we carry.

Mindworks in Conversation with Dr. Mel Thacker

Our Tony Errichetti talks with Dr. Mel Thacker, an ENT surgeon, coach, and author, about learning that being successful and capable doesn’t make you immune to shame, anxiety, or self-doubt.

Authors Rachel Weaver and Kimberly Warner joined 45 participants in Oregon for a Narrative Mindworks co-sponsored workshop exploring illness, uncertainty, and life beyond a tidy recovery story.

Physician and author Neil J. Farber joins Tony Errichetti to discuss how his experiences as a doctor, caregiver, and patient shaped his call for a more humane healthcare system, and why listening, curiosity, and time with patients matter.

When Terry Miller imagined cancer cells as campers hiking through her body and setting up campsites, she turned to her daughter, Amanda Erin Miller, and asked: “Wouldn’t that be a funny sketch?”

That question became Quacks & Whacks: A Cancer Comedy, a mother-daughter collaboration about illness, the absurdity of the American healthcare system, and the ways humor can help people face what is difficult. Amanda will bring the show back to Caveat in New York on September 13, followed by a patient advocacy panel, in memory of Terry.

Narrative Mindworks spoke with clinical psychologist, poet, and musician Carol Moog, PhD, about anger, creativity, and the different ways we learn to understand and express ourselves.

In this Snapshot Story, Stephanie Goldklang traces the roots of her comedy, caregiving perspective, and Narrative Medicine practice back to two people who shaped her most: her brother Jonathan and a young poet named Mattie.

 Narrative Mindworks spoke with Jackie Quan, founder of JQ Consulting LLC, about mindfulness, resilience, emotional regulation, and what it takes for individuals and teams to truly thrive.

Narrative Mindworks spoke with physician and author Shanda McManus about Brother Epistles, her intimate address to her younger brother Monir, who was murdered in North Philadelphia in 1992.

In this Mindworks in Conversation episode, Broadway performer, voice coach, and standardized patient Mary Illes explores the intersection of performance art and medical education. Drawing from her experience on stage and in clinical simulation, Illes reflects on how artistic skills such as voice, physical presence, emotional authenticity, and improvisation can help medical students become more aware, responsive, and human-centered in patient encounters.