Nostrum Editorial Board
Many of us have had a similar experience over the past few weeks. When sharing that we decided to name this new publication “Nostrum”, we heard: but why? Why would we purposefully give our publication a name that means something like “a cure that doesn’t work”? Aren’t we just undermining ourselves and what we know, right at the beginning of our career as medical students? Moreover, aren’t we undermining the entire practice of medical humanities, by calling it ineffective?
Perhaps. But that is not our intent. See, nostrum does not exactly mean a cure that doesn’t work. If you look at our definition on the home page, it means a medicine that has not been proven to be effective (presumably by peer-reviewed standards), made by someone who is not particularly qualified (by traditional standards, perhaps).
What we hope to project, by embracing the name “Nostrum” for our new publication, is just this tension: that real and powerful kinds of knowledge exist among those deemed to be unqualified, too young, too inexperienced.
We hope that this publication will serve as a community touchpoint among trainees, students, and/or learners to imagine what the future of health and health care can and should look like. After all, we’re the ones who are going to be practicing and caring in (and out of) it.
We hope you enjoy!
Nostrum 