Imagination in narrative medicine: A case study in a children's hospital in Italy.

This article presents a qualitative study realized in the Children's University Hospital of Parma, Italy, aimed at observing the effects of the fictional narrative in the emotions of the young patients. The results showed that, especially by means of projection, identification and symbolization, the imagination helps the children to elaborate in a positive way the bad emotions elicited by the experience of the disease and of the stay in hospital. Furthermore, the study was useful to the healthcare professionals in order to understand the emotive, cognitive and relational needs of the patients. We suggest the introduction of creative expression in the narrative medicine in addition to the autobiographical accounts, the questionnaires and the interviews in some particular care contexts.