Giuseppe Pasta (1742-1823 : Protophysician and pioneer of psychological studies in the medical field

Giuseppe Pasta (1742–1823), a pioneer of psychological support in physical disease, was born in Bergamo, Italy, and was strongly influenced by the ideas of Giovanni Battista Morgagni and Francesco Redi. This paper discusses the courage and philosophical tolerance of disease and the etiquette of the physician. The problems of the relationship between patient andphysician, and of psychological support in physical disease, have attracted increasing interest recently. Dynamic psychology has provided us with tools for better understanding the apparently irrational aspects of the patient–physician relationship, and the cognitive disciplines have improved our ability to communicate with and relate to patients. Today’s students risk receiving an oversimplified impression of what medical care entails, founded – as in ancient times – on authoritarian methods and without interest in a more in-depth analysis of the emotional factors acting in ill people.