Clinical Empathy

• Definition: 

 Clinical empathy is the ability to stand in a patient’s shoes and to convey an understanding of the patient’s situation as well as the desire to help.

• Research 

A spate of studies in the past decade has found that it is no mere frill. Increasingly,  empathy is considered essential to establishing trust, the foundation of a good doctor-patient relationship.

• Benefits

 Studies have linked empathy to greater patient satisfaction, better outcomes, decreased physician burnout, and a lower risk of malpractice suits and errors. 

Helps with burnout
 Empathy training is naturally self-rewarding,”  “It gives [doctors] the love back,” she said, referring to the positive feedback empathic doctors receive from their patients.