 She also completed a doctorate in English from Columbia University in 1999, focusing her studies on the writing of Henry James and the role of literature in medicine.In 2000, she founded the Program in Narrative Medicine at Columbia, which launched the Master of Science in Narrative Medicine, the first graduate program of its kind, in 2009.She currently directs the Narrative Medicine curriculum for Columbia Medical School and teaches literature, narrative ethics, and life-telling, both in the medical center and to students in the Narrative Medicine master's degree program.