DYING ON DOCTORS : ITS IMPACT ON DOCTOR-PATIENT RELATIONS

Abstract

Death is often considered a traumatic event for the living. The process of dying demands the restructuring of the existing relationships between both the moribund and all who are associated with the dying. Death as a phenomenon presents itself as a formidable challenge to the traditional understanding of medicine's role as curative rather than palliative in nature. Moreover, death requires a response from the medical setting and the most significant actor in that setting, the doctor. How can the physician cope with such exacting demands in his work with the dying? What may be the resulting impact on the doctor-patient relationship? This study aims to explore the various issues revolving around interactions between doctors and their dying patients from the physician's perspective. It seeks in particular, to investigate the factors that motivate physicians to draw closer to their patients, despite the potentially higher personal and emotional costs of involvement. It has been found that the formal socialisation contexts promote and legitimise relational distancing as a coping mechanism among physicians. This is in contrast to the informal socialisation processes that include observational learning in medicine, the collegiate environment and the immediate work setting, which serve to foster a closer relationship between the physician and his patients. Thus, to encourage physicians towards greater responsiveness to the social and emotional needs of their patients, structural changes are deemed as necessary at all levels in the socialisation process.