Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck St, Boston, MA, 02115, USA.
J Relig Health. 2022 Aug;61(4):3151-3163. doi: 10.1007/s10943-021-01388-2. Epub 2021 Sep 1.
Questions of meaning may seem more properly suited to the spheres of religion or philosophy; yet physicians certainly witness some of the greatest sufferings of their patients' lives, and through this suffering, many patients look to their doctors not just for treatments but for answers. In this essay, the author highlights an exchange between patient and doctor in Thomas Wolfe's Look Homeward, Angel, to argue that physicians need not have ready made answers about life, meaning, or spirituality, but should indeed provide comfort and support when their patients ask: "What's it all about?"
意义的问题似乎更适合宗教或哲学领域；然而，医生肯定见证了患者生命中最巨大的痛苦，通过这种痛苦，许多患者不仅向医生寻求治疗，还寻求答案。在这篇文章中，作者强调了托马斯·沃尔夫的《天使，望故乡》中患者和医生之间的一次交流，认为医生不必对生活、意义或灵性有现成的答案，但当他们的患者问“这一切是为了什么？”时，他们确实应该提供安慰和支持。
