[Effects of confrontation of medical students and hospital physicians with human cadavers]

Eighty male and female doctors of various ages working in a general hospital were questioned on their feelings on being confronted with human corpses and the possible effects of the experience. Their responses were analysed and compared with those of 100 male and female medical students. The potential short-term effects and lasting consequences are many and varied. Forty-four per cent of the doctors reported that repeated dealings with the bodies of patients known to them did not lead to habituation. A high proportion of the students and doctors stated that exposure to corpses had a positive effect on their dealings with living patients. The reluctance of some doctors to attend autopsies of their patients is connected with their difficulties in coping with the experience. Further, more detailed studies are called for.