The originality of Georg Groddeck's works and some of his contributions to the field of healthcare

Abstract

This article aimed to present some ideas about medicine, disease, health and healing extracted from the works of the physician and psychoanalyst Georg Groddeck (1866-1934). The hypothesis that guided this study was that these propositions could actively contribute towards the contemporary discussion about the limits of biomedicine and the need to reformulate the Western healthcare model. First, we analyzed the historical and philosophical origins of biomedicine and some of the dilemmas faced by users and healthcare professionals caused by the predominance of biomedical rationality. Then, some light is shed on Groddeck's life and work, culminating with presentation of four important contributions from this author, assessed in the light of the biomedical limits.