Empathy in medical education and practice
Background: Empathy is a cornerstone of effective medical practice, encompassing cognitive, emotional, moral, and behavioral dimensions. Despite its profound impact on patient outcomes and physician well-being, declines in empathy during medical training remain a concern. This study aimed to assess...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Telangana Journal of Psychiatry |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://journals.lww.com/10.4103/tjp.tjp_13_25 |
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| author | Sanjana Palakodeti Sravanthi Penubarthi J N Ambika Bai |
| author_facet | Sanjana Palakodeti Sravanthi Penubarthi J N Ambika Bai |
| author_sort | Sanjana Palakodeti |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background:
Empathy is a cornerstone of effective medical practice, encompassing cognitive, emotional, moral, and behavioral dimensions. Despite its profound impact on patient outcomes and physician well-being, declines in empathy during medical training remain a concern. This study aimed to assess empathy levels among medical students across different training years and explore factors influencing these levels.
Methodology:
A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 409 medical and dental students in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Empathy levels were assessed using the Toronto Empathy Questionnaire, a validated 16-item self-report tool, based on which the participants were categorized as having “below-average empathy” or “good empathy.” Data analysis was performed using the SPSS Version 20.0, with descriptive and analytical statistics examining associations with demographic and academic factors.
Results:
Of the participants, 50.9% were having below-average empathy. Empathy levels varied across academic years, with 2nd-year students demonstrating the highest proportion of “good empathy” (53.5%), though differences across years were not statistically significant (P = 0.78). Similarly, no significant differences were found between MBBS and BDS students (P = 0.55). Gender was significantly associated with empathy levels, with females exhibiting higher empathy scores (P = 0.001). Specialty preferences did not significantly correlate with empathy levels (P = 0.64).
Conclusion:
While empathy is critical for healthcare professionals, its variability across genders and the lack of a consistent trend across academic years call for innovative educational strategies. Incorporating empathy-focused training into medical curricula could serve as an effective method for nurturing more compassionate and patient-centered future healthcare providers. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-9476ee84b9094d83ac8aadea5d4c62a1 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2772-8706 2455-8559 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Telangana Journal of Psychiatry |
| spelling | doaj-art-9476ee84b9094d83ac8aadea5d4c62a12025-08-20T03:31:45ZengWolters Kluwer Medknow PublicationsTelangana Journal of Psychiatry2772-87062455-85592025-01-01111252910.4103/tjp.tjp_13_25Empathy in medical education and practiceSanjana PalakodetiSravanthi PenubarthiJ N Ambika BaiBackground: Empathy is a cornerstone of effective medical practice, encompassing cognitive, emotional, moral, and behavioral dimensions. Despite its profound impact on patient outcomes and physician well-being, declines in empathy during medical training remain a concern. This study aimed to assess empathy levels among medical students across different training years and explore factors influencing these levels. Methodology: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 409 medical and dental students in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Empathy levels were assessed using the Toronto Empathy Questionnaire, a validated 16-item self-report tool, based on which the participants were categorized as having “below-average empathy” or “good empathy.” Data analysis was performed using the SPSS Version 20.0, with descriptive and analytical statistics examining associations with demographic and academic factors. Results: Of the participants, 50.9% were having below-average empathy. Empathy levels varied across academic years, with 2nd-year students demonstrating the highest proportion of “good empathy” (53.5%), though differences across years were not statistically significant (P = 0.78). Similarly, no significant differences were found between MBBS and BDS students (P = 0.55). Gender was significantly associated with empathy levels, with females exhibiting higher empathy scores (P = 0.001). Specialty preferences did not significantly correlate with empathy levels (P = 0.64). Conclusion: While empathy is critical for healthcare professionals, its variability across genders and the lack of a consistent trend across academic years call for innovative educational strategies. Incorporating empathy-focused training into medical curricula could serve as an effective method for nurturing more compassionate and patient-centered future healthcare providers.https://journals.lww.com/10.4103/tjp.tjp_13_25empathygendermedical studentsyears of training |
| spellingShingle | Sanjana Palakodeti Sravanthi Penubarthi J N Ambika Bai Empathy in medical education and practice Telangana Journal of Psychiatry empathy gender medical students years of training |
| title | Empathy in medical education and practice |
| title_full | Empathy in medical education and practice |
| title_fullStr | Empathy in medical education and practice |
| title_full_unstemmed | Empathy in medical education and practice |
| title_short | Empathy in medical education and practice |
| title_sort | empathy in medical education and practice |
| topic | empathy gender medical students years of training |
| url | https://journals.lww.com/10.4103/tjp.tjp_13_25 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT sanjanapalakodeti empathyinmedicaleducationandpractice AT sravanthipenubarthi empathyinmedicaleducationandpractice AT jnambikabai empathyinmedicaleducationandpractice |