I’m Dani Clark, MA in Art Education from University of Cincinnati, Narrative Medicine Certification from Columbia University, and I’ve received training in patient story collection through the U.S. Department of Veterans’ Affairs initiatives, My Life, My Story (MLMS). MLMS exists in 75+ VA medical centers around the country, inviting patients to tell their stories, which are then transcribed and uploaded into their electronic medical records, all with patients’ permission. As a National Endowment of the Arts MATCH fellow, I continue to support the MLMS program by equipping medical residents, UC students, and community volunteers to interview patients about their lives, ultimately bringing the person within the patient to the forefront of care. Additionally, I facilitate Narrative Medicine workshops for MLMS volunteers. During the workshops, patients closely read poems together and then respond to writing prompts. As part of my practice, I craft response poems based on each session.

Since my fellowship began, much of my time has been spent familiarizing with and refining existing processes and training materials. We’ve collaborated with medical students from the University of Cincinnati to form an official MLMS student group, where Dr. Nam-Ha Brown and I present about the program and insights we’ve gathered from our story collection experiences. So far, I’ve had the opportunity to practice my project coordination skills, develop Narrative Medicine-based offerings for program volunteers, and collaborate with local partners on events.

I’ve also had a number of speaking opportunities (and more to come) for veterans, volunteers, and providers where I share about the program and ways to get involved with MLMS. These speaking opportunities have ranged from internal VA events to community events.While I’m comfortable with public-speaking, it’s been useful to have such focused practice and with a range of community populations. My personal practice has deepened through this new context. I’m looking forward to seeing how it shapes visual representations of this narrative-based work.