Experiencia de enfermar y legitimación del rol de enfermoel caso del dolor crónico

Abstract

The article aims to analyze the experience of becoming ill and the concept of the sick role of the American sociologist Talcott Parsons in order to revisit its current validity and account for the central elements that make it up. The analysis focuses particularly on one of the most important aspects of the role of the patient:the legitimization of the illness and, consequently, of the rights and duties that, like any social role, entails. After the theoretical-conceptual review, the study focuses on people who sufier from chronic pain, showing through various empirical investigations the difficulties that these people suffer in order to legitimize their condition. The results provide evidence of the lack of understanding, credibility and legitimacy sufiered by people affected by chronic pain as their symptoms lack an objective medical explanation. This evidence reflects gaps ¡n a strongly medicalized health system that is far removed from the subjective aspects of the process of becoming ill and its consequences. The review carried out suggests that the theoretical concept of the role of the patient with its various nuances continues to be a powerful theoret¡cal construct to describe the personal and social experience of being ill, to understand professional relationships with pat¡ents and to analyze the way in which each Society constructs illness as legitimate and, consequently, the rights to health and well-being of citizens are restr¡cted. Given that health social work deals with treating the psychosocial aspects associated with illness, its contribution is substantialwithin health teams.