ABSTRACT
Healthcare organizations and training programs worldwide have directed increased focus and resources toward employing and graduating well-rounded medical professionals who work with patients not only to address the symptoms at hand, but to support them in totality—clearly, efficiently, and empathetically. To train these professionals experientially, these institutions make use of Standardized Patients (SPs); actors who, by virtue of their training, can truthfully and empathetically step into the role of patient in standardized immersive encounters with healthcare professionals. It is the immersive nature of this work that calls acting pedagogues to explore a unique approach, within our existing training modalities, to prepare actors for this often-lucrative line of work, beyond the stage. This essay shares the experience of a standardized encounter, examines the proficiencies that make for skilled SPs, and explores approaches to recontextualizing and reimagining actor training to generate increasingly marketable artists.
