Interdisciplinary project 'Diversity in Death and Dying' wins Vice-Chancellor’s Awards

16 May 2025

020 diversity in death and dying medical student museum

Diversity in Death and Dying: Medical Student Museum Experience Team ©John Cairns Photography

The Faculty of Theology and Religion is delighted to announce that Diversity in Death and Dying: Medical Student Museum Experience has won the 2025 Vice-Chancellor’s Award in the Teaching and Learning category.

 

Led by a team including Dr Gina Hadley, Dr Sally Frampton, Dr Jim Harris, Professor Joshua Hordern, and Dr Ariel Dempsey, the project invites Oxford medical students to explore the emotional, cultural, and ethical dimensions of end-of-life care through guided engagement with objects in the Ashmolean Museum. Medical students are immersed in the Ashmolean Museum to use objects and images to interrogate aspects of end-of-life care and are asked to reflect on the challenges presented by this unavoidable part of professional practice. This collaborative initiative draws on expertise from Theology, Neurosciences, History, and the Medical School, with vital contributions from expert patient tutors. 

 

Dr Ariel Dempsey, an MD and DPhil candidate in Theology, and Professor Joshua Hordern of the Faculty were both involved in the design and delivery of this transformative educational experience. It draws on Professor Hordern's collaborative work on Advancing Medical Professionalism with the Royal College of Physicians.

 

Separately, Professor Joshua Hordern was also part of a team that won a Vice-Chancellor’s Award for Research Culture, recognising the achievements of the TORCH Medical Humanities Research Hub.

 

The Medical Humanities Hub, part of The Oxford Research Centre in the Humanities (TORCH), highlights the vital contribution of the humanities to our understanding of health, disease, and medicine. It supports interdisciplinary research at the intersection of the medical sciences and the arts, humanities, and social sciences—challenging the notion that medical innovation is the preserve of clinical and laboratory settings alone.

 

Professor Hordern’s involvement in both award-winning initiatives reflects the work and culture of the Oxford Healthcare Values Partnership which he leads and the wider Faculty’s ongoing commitment to enriching education and fostering a positive, inclusive research culture at Oxford.

 

Find out more on the Vice-Chancellor’s Awards webpage.