Emotional aspects involved in the diagnosis of brain death: an experience in the Municipal Public Service of Santos-SP Roseane Carlos Cordeiro, Denise Marques Alexandre, Breno Ayres Chaves Rodrigues, Rafael Moreira Dardaque Mucinhato, Gisela Vasconcellos Monteiro, Laís Barreto Barbosa, Jessica Silva Gottschalk

Abstract

This essay aimed to provide some elements that indicate how subjectively complex the process of diagnosing Brain Death is. It involves different actors and institutions, and from my point of view, although the determination of Brain Death is a diagnosis within the responsibility of the physician, it is, above all, a collective construction. While advances in organ procurement are indisputable, the routine of dealing with death, especially brain death, raises concerns that are often voiced by professionals working in critical care units and observed by organ procurement teams. The diagnosis of Brain Death goes beyond the mere execution of a technical procedure, as it sparks philosophical, ethical, and bioethical discussions.