Ignitions of empathy: Medical students feel touched and shaken by interacting with patients with chronic conditions in communication and skills training

Publikation: Bidrag til tidsskriftTidsskriftartikelfagfællebedømt

Objective
To explore what and how medical students learn from patients with chronic conditions in the context of communication skills training.
Methods
Semi-structured interviews and focus groups with 32 medical students. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, analyzed inductively and organized into four main narrative themes.
Results
Learning from patients provided medical students opportunities to see the world through the patients’ eyes, understand the diversity of patients’ needs, and recognize the importance of matching patients’ and doctors’ perspectives. Consequently, students expressed emotional responses on challenges in interactions with the patients related to performing the role as ‘medical expert’. Difficulty empathizing became visible in the students’ interaction with patients.
Conclusion
The patients’ authentic contributions provided the students with unique opportunities to engage with their own emotions and capacity for empathy. However, for students to benefit from this affective practical training, they need guidance to balance professional and personal aspects in encounters. There is a need to introduce the ‘doctor as person’ in medical education.
Practice implications
Patients with chronic conditions strengthen students’ learning of empathy as part of transformative learning. Doing so with patients is a challenging way of learning. Thus, faculty and educators must provide explicit guidance for students to benefit.
OriginalsprogEngelsk
TidsskriftPatient Education and Counseling
Vol/bind104
Udgave nummer7
Sider (fra-til)1668-1673
Antal sider6
ISSN0738-3991
DOI
StatusUdgivet - 2021

ID: 255553396