Panel: RELIGION, HEALTH, AND WELLBEING 2nd day



165_2.3 - UNDERSTANDING THE BELIEF IN MIRACLES IN PROFESSIONALS WHO ASSIST BABIES WITH CONGENITAL MALFORMATIONS

AUTHORS:
Leal M. (Center University of Brazilian, Materno-Infant Hospital of Brazilian, Catholic University of Brazilian ~ Brazilian ~ Brazil) , Freitas M.H. (Catholic University of Brazilian ~ Brazilian ~ Brazil)
Text:
Belief in miracles is an important source of hope and well-being for patients and their families, especially in the case of serious or lethal illnesses, but it can also be a source of conflict between patients and their families and health professionals. In order to understand how health professionals' own belief in miracles interferes with the patient relationship, an empirical qualitative study was carried out in Brazil in 2023, with a phenomenological framework analyzed using Amedeo Georgi's method, which aims to understand the belief in miracles held by 17 health professionals who treat congenital malformations. More than 150 units of meaning were generated, the most common being that a miracle is the realization of the impossible (cure) according to their conceptions, but when they cite stories of miracles, they exemplify that life, discharge, adoption are also miracles, and these are other units of meaning. A second very common unit of meaning was the desire to address the belief in miracles with the baby's relatives. However, the lack of training is a major impediment, the third most identified unit. These units of meaning were nucleated into re-signifying miracles, living the belief in the miracle and communicating the belief in miracles as the most relevant nuclei. Based on this research, it can be inferred that belief in miracles, for the various health professionals, a miracle is a cure - the impossible, based on theology. From this research it can be inferred that the belief in the miracle, for the various health professionals, is the cure - the impossible, based on theology. However, with the examples, the re-signification of the miracle was predominant, since in the existential dimension the miracle can adopt different concepts and this needs to be better understood in order to correctly approach the belief in the miracle and in the health sciences, promoting greater well-being for patients and their families.