Forming a Medical Work-Object‪. ‪The Case of General Medicine and Obstetrics

?A work-object can be defined as what makes sense of an activity, ? ?i.e? ?. that gives it both meaning and direction. In contexts where all doctors are specialists and perform very different tasks, is it possible to find a work-object that might be shared by the entire medical profession? After challenging the concept of ?work-object? and the various ways it can be analysed, the author attempts to grasp its most widespread characteristic, ? ?i.e.? ? what doctors are taught during the first six years of medical school. She then goes on to dissect two medical specialties ?general medicine and obstetrics and gynaecology (O&G)? and shows that a work-object, practically inseparable from the way it is taught, evolves differently in each discipline. This leads to discussing the link between practical and theoretical training, that could apply to all healthcare activity, and even beyond, to other professions.?