Oh wow, that story of the EMT’s kind understanding about the dog’s death brought tears to my eyes. And I love your point that small, everyday gestures really do matter.
Read this during a quiet moment this morning, then thought about efforts to teach empathy while I was on the faculty of our local medical school. What I recall was thinking that I might enhance a student’s empathy, and perhaps also show how to protect your empathy as you progress through a medical career. What I struggled with was how to instill empathy in someone who was looking at medical care strictly as a technical skill. I concluded that candidate selection for admission was critical in making sure that those preparing to be bedside clinicians had the potential ability to relate to a sick or troubled human being.
Medical care requires both technical skills and a compassionate demeanor, no question. As our healthcare system becomes ever more complex, however, a person-to-person connection is imperative. I say this as a former provider now turned current patient.
Oh wow, that story of the EMT’s kind understanding about the dog’s death brought tears to my eyes. And I love your point that small, everyday gestures really do matter.
Read this during a quiet moment this morning, then thought about efforts to teach empathy while I was on the faculty of our local medical school. What I recall was thinking that I might enhance a student’s empathy, and perhaps also show how to protect your empathy as you progress through a medical career. What I struggled with was how to instill empathy in someone who was looking at medical care strictly as a technical skill. I concluded that candidate selection for admission was critical in making sure that those preparing to be bedside clinicians had the potential ability to relate to a sick or troubled human being.
Medical care requires both technical skills and a compassionate demeanor, no question. As our healthcare system becomes ever more complex, however, a person-to-person connection is imperative. I say this as a former provider now turned current patient.
Thanks for this piece, Theresa.