CHAPTER 7: WHAT SYMBOLIC ANSWERS TO DEATH IN THE MEDICAL WORLD?

Resumen

Introduction: By threatening our lives, death becomes a medical as well as an institutional issue. To remedy the quest of sense, Man develops a culture amongst which the symbols will be the basis of rites. Recent studies have shown a high rate of burnout syndromes and suicide within the medical community. With a qualitative approach, we aimed to answer the following question: do doctor possess symbolic means of personal defence in front of the dissolvent action of death?  Methods: We built up a questionnaire from key points raised by anthropology and sociology of death. It was addressed to residents of Saint Louis Hospital (Paris, France) during winter 2016-2017. Results: Twenty comprehensive answers were obtained. Young physicians were between 25 and 33 years old (55% haematologists, 35% oncologists, others general practitioners & internal medicine physicians). We show that, to remedy the quest of sense in presence of death, young physicians reckon having repetitive gestures with corpses, thus elaborating the beginning of a personal rite. We also demons-trate the role of empathy and palliative medicine in diminishing the pain of seeing agony and death. Finally, we weave a tie between the lack of collective catharsis at hospital and the high rate of suicide and depressions within the medical community. Conclusion: In the West, we are out of effective symbolism due to the shift of rituals on less metaphysical symbols. This shift of symbolism also affects hospital which failed to develop or protect means to transcend death in a collective scale.