Phenomenology as a philosophical orientation for understanding the transformative experience of disabling illness.
Bruce Greenfield
Topics in stroke rehabilitation 2011 DOI: 10.1310/tsr1801-35 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Commentary Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Philosophy of mind |
| Keywords | Humans Orientation Comprehension Transfer, psychology Persons with disabilities |
| Key points | Argues that phenomenology serves both as a philosophy for understanding the world and as a methodology for grasping the lived, existential, and transformative experiences of patients with life-changing disabilities, and contends, following Kaufman, that it can help health care professionals expand their understanding and provide fuller, more holistic care. |
Abstract
Kaufman's ground-breaking work in the 1980s introduced the phenomenology of disability. In my commentary, I describe phenomenology as a philosophy of understanding the world around us and as a methodology for understanding the lived experiences of patients with life-changing disabilities. Like Kaufman, my focus for the use of phenomenology in health care is to capture the existential and transformative experience of illness. As such, I agree with Kaufman that phenomenology can help health care professionals expand their understanding of patient experiences to provide a fuller and richer, holistic response to care.