Highlighting Social Science and Global Health in The Lancet: The Cases in Global Social Medicine Series

A conversation with U-M leaders shaping The Lancet’s monthly series exploring how social contexts influence health and care 

Care doesn’t always take place within the four walls of the clinic, and sometimes the most important details shaping a patient’s health information aren’t written in a chart.

Launched one year ago and continuing through at least 2027, The Lancet’s monthly Cases in Global Social Medicine series explores how social forces influence health and care in different contexts. U-M faculty have played a major role, both in publishing cases and in organizing the series itself. Dr. Scott Stonington, Associate Professor of Internal Medicine and Anthropology, who serves as guest editor and contributor, will lead a discussion with UMMS colleagues who have likewise authored series papers. 

Join us for a discussion that seeks to bridge medicine and the humanities. Speakers will include:

Clinical Professor of Surgery Gifty Kwakye, MD, MPH & Joy Obayemi, MD, General Surgery Resident
Myopic Medical Harm (Ghana): A man receives free colon cancer screening in Ghana (Published May 2026)

Professor of Internal Medicine and Health Behavior & Health Equity Michele Heisler, MD, MPA & Zoe Boudart, MD-PhD Student
Medico-legal Entanglement: A woman with abdominal pain in Peru (Published March 2026)

Associate Professor of Internal Medicine and Anthropology Scott Stonington, MD, PhD
Linguistic Pragmatism: A woman with progressive abdominal pain in Thailand (Published January 2026)
Ethical Shunts: An old woman in an Italian emergency department (Published June 2026)

Sponsored by Global REACH, the U-M Center for History, Humanities, Arts, Social Sciences and Ethics in Medicine, and the U-M Center for Global Health Equity