Open AccessUnderstanding care relationships in diabetes practice: A psychodynamic interview-based exploratory study
Author(s) -
Francesco Marchini,
Andrea Caputo,
Viviana Langher,
Chiara Giuliani,
Alessio Convertino,
Rossella Mazzilli,
Antongiulio Faggiano,
Angela Napoli
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
plos one
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.99
H-Index - 332
ISSN - 1932-6203
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pone.0263226
Subject(s) - thematic analysis , anxiety , psychodynamics , depersonalization , psychology , ambivalence , burnout , clinical psychology , health care , medicine , emotional exhaustion , nursing , qualitative research , social psychology , psychiatry , psychotherapist , social science , sociology , economics , economic growth
Objective To explore the subjective experience of physicians working in diabetic settings about their care relationships in order to find some unique clues contributing to physician professional health and capacity to manage patients’ adherence. Research design and methods An interview-based exploratory study has been carried out involving 18 physicians (77.8% female) with at least 3 years of clinical practice in diabetes care. In-depth interviews about the emotional experience with patients with diabetes were conducted and audio recorded. Interviews transcripts were analyzed through a computer-based text analysis which allowed the identification of thematic domains (Cluster Analysis) and latent factors (Correspondence Analysis) viewed through a psychodynamic and constructivist lens. Results Six thematic domains emerged respectively referring to: Concern (8.43%), Control (14.42%), Ambivalence (22.08%), Devotion (22.49%), Guilt (19.29%) and Strive for Achievement (13.30%). Moreover, three latent dimensions were taken into account, which explained 69.20% of data variance: Affect Repression (28.50%), Tendency to Repair (22.70%) and Anxiety Pattern (18.00%). Conclusions Overall, the results of the present study confirm the challenging nature of diabetes care. In particular, physicians ongoing effort to restore patients’ psychological integrity in chronic condition constitute the most novel finding above all. In this regard, the need for emotional labor in physicians’ education and training is suggested in order to both prevent burnout symptoms (e.g. depersonalization) and promote shared decision making in care relationships. However, findings should be treated as preliminary given the convenience nature of the sample and its reduced size.