Bio
Photo Credit: Emily Schwab
Robert Schwab—Physician, Author, Speaker
Throughout a long and varied career as a physician, teacher, and writer, Dr. Schwab has consistently focused on the importance of humanism in medicine, and the ways in which a study of the humanities can benefit those who are pursuing a career in healthcare. He has written essays, poems, and stories, some of which explore medical themes, but all of which illuminate various aspects of the human condition that contribute to our understanding of suffering and healing. His novels address father/child relationships as well as the life experiences that influence identity formation and threaten one’s personal identity.
A former professor of medical humanities and emergency medicine, and medical school clinical department chair, Schwab also practiced palliative medicine for a number of years, providing care and healing to patients at the end of life. He left clinical practice in 2010, and now serves in an administrative role for a major health system, while continuing to write, speak and teach about his passion for the intersection of medicine and the humanities.
He received his undergraduate and medical degrees from the University of Virginia, completed postgraduate training in emergency medicine and patient safety, served as teaching faculty in Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Missouri, and now lives in Dallas, where he writes, fronts a cover band, teaches a seminar on the healing power of stories at UT Dallas, and plays golf as often as he can. He and his wife, Cathy, reside in the home owned and operated by their two cats, Sox and Jester, and are the proud parents of two fine young adults, Tyler and Emily.
