Health 1–18 © The Author(s) 2016 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/1363459315628041 hea.sagepub.com Reading Balint group work through Lacan’s theory of the four discourses Kaatje Van Roy Ghent University, Belgium Anne Marché-Paillé Laval University, Canada Filip Geerardyn and Stijn Vanheule Ghent University, Belgium Abstract In Balint groups, (para)medical professionals explore difficult interactions with patients by means of case presentations and discussions. As the process of Balint group work is not well understood, this article investigates Balint group meetings by making use of Lacan’s theory of the four discourses. Five Balint group case presentations and their subsequent group discussion were studied, resulting in the observation of five crucial aspects of Balint group work. First, Balint group participants brought puzzlement to the group, which is indicative of the structural impossibility Lacan situates at the basis of all discourse (1). As for the group discussion, we emphasize ‘hysterization’ as a crucial process in Balint group work (2), the supporting role of the discourse of the analyst (3) and the centrality of discourse interactions (4). Finally, the potential transformation of the initial puzzlement is discussed (5). We conclude by putting forth the uniqueness of Balint group work as well as the potential usefulness of our analysis as a framework for Balint group leaders and professionals in charge of continuing medical education. Keywords Balint group, discourse, Lacan, psychoanalysis, qualitative research Corresponding author: Kaatje Van Roy, Department of Psychoanalysis and Clinical Consulting, Ghent University, H. Dunantlaan 2, 9000 Gent, Belgium. Email: kaatvanroy@yahoo.com 628041HEA 0 0 10.1177/1363459315628041HealthVan Roy et al. research-article 2016 Article by guest on February 26, 2016 hea.sagepub.com Downloaded from