Emotional Meanings of Clinical Practice with Head and Neck Cancer Patients: a qualitative study with Brazilian professionals

Objective To interpret emotional meanings attributed by healthcare professionals to the clinical management of patients with Head and Neck Cancer, in a university-specialised outpatient service at a public general hospital. Method A qualitative study was carried out using semi-directed interviews with open-ended questions in-depth. The sample was closed by the saturation strategy. Data treatment was conducted by Clinical-Qualitative Content Analysis technique under theoretical framework of psychodynamic concepts from Medical Psychology, and validation by peers from a research group. Results Ten clinical professionals were interviewed: four physicians and six nurses. From the analysis of the interviews, three categories are constructed for this article: (01) – An Instituted Stigmatization; (02) Wide-Open Reality; (03) Naturalization without Trivialization. The aggressivity of these tumours, the association with harmful lifestyle habits, and the great concern of family members call for clinical-psychological management, in which subjective mechanisms such as denial or other more primitive psychological defences have no sufficient resolution. Conclusions The stigma is a symbolic entity that takes distress for the clinicians, but also seems to highlight a higher level of awareness and reflection. This awareness can be a starting point for the development of healthier strategies for emotional coping, contributing to a more balanced work and personal harmonic relationship of care.