"Boosting" Empathy through Continuing Medical Education

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Have you had your empathy booster shot?

Interpersonal relationships are considered essential to the practice of medicine. Empathy, in turn, forms the basis of strong interpersonal relationships. However, empathy is often lacking in our medical system. A great deal of attention has been focused on redesigning medical education to address declines in empathy among medical students. However, I believe our efforts to boost empathy should also be targeted at practicing clinicians through continuing medical education. Dr. Beth Lown, Medical Director at the Kenneth B. Schwartz Center, agrees.

Beth recently published research (co-authored by Colleen Manning, Goodman Research) which found that participants in the Schwartz Center Rounds reported a positive impact on patient interactions. (The Rounds are interdisciplinary sessions where clinicians discuss psychosocial and emotional aspects of patient care.) Even more importantly, the study found that the frequency of Rounds participation had a statistically significant impact on the following dimensions of patient interaction:

• Having more compassion for patients and families
• Feeling more comfortable discussing sensitive issues with patients and families
• Having new strategies for handling difficult patient situations

I believe the lessons of this study extend well beyond evaluation of the Schwartz Center Rounds:

• Results support previous research that empathy can be systematically enhanced and measured.
• Findings underscore the fact that empathy education should not be limited to medical students.
• An ongoing commitment is essential to maintain high levels of empathy among clinicians.
• Continuing medical education programs can provide the basis for sustaining this commitment.

The Schwartz Center Rounds is just one of many programs which can promote empathy across the continuum of medical education. How are you “boosting” empathy?