PEDIATRICS Vol. 40 No. 3 September 1967, pp. 507-510
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Reactions of Those Who Treat Children with Cancer

Michael B. Rothenberg M.D.1

1 The Departments of Pediatrics and Psychiatry, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and the Bronx Municipal Hospital Center, New York, New York

IT IS MY impression that the reactions of those who treat or otherwise work with children who are dying of cancer or other fatal illnesses develop from a core conflict within each worker. This conflict arises because two powerful and normal, but antithetical emotional responses are elicited simultaneously when one is involved with the care of the dying—or even possibly dying—child. On the one hand, there is the response of compassion which produces the impulse to move toward the child with aid and comfort at every level. On the other hand, there is the response of repulsion by the threat of death which produces the impulse to move away from the dying child in order to begin to protect oneself from the impending shock of separation and loss. The degree of success with which this conflict is resolved determines the degree of success of the individual health care worker in providing comprehensive care for the child with cancer. Before discussing some suggested ways to approach a successful resolution of this conflict, I should like to outline some of the more common feelings and reactions of those who treat children with cancer which may interfere with such a resolution.

All those who have chosen the provision of health care services to the sick as their vocation—be they physicians; nurses; practical nurses; nurses' aides; occupational, physical, or recreational therapists; or medical social workers—have in common the desire to help sick people get well. One may ask why one should find it necessary to make such a blatantly obvious statement.




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