ABSTRACT #35

EMPATHY AMONG INTERNAL MEDICINE RESIDENTS, ASSESSMENT AND IMPROVEMENT

Erick Kawegere

PURPOSE AND GOALS: Merriam Webster defines empathy as the action of understanding, being aware of, being sensitive to, and vicariously experiencing the feelings, thoughts, and experience of another of either the past or present without having the feelings, thoughts, and experience fully communicated in an objectively explicitly manner [1]

In medicine, this is such a powerful tool physicians can use to enhance communication with their patients. Clinical empathy is crucial in building physician-patient relationship, and there is evidence from the healthrelated research literature to support the positive association of clinical empathy with improved therapeutic outcomes in a wide range of clinical settings [2]

Since clinical empathy is crucial in establishing interpersonal relationships, both among physicians and patients, then during training, it is also crucial to ensure residents are trained to maintain clinical empathy, additionally, this should be assessed periodically. Unfortunately, there is evidence of decline in empathy during training [3], additionally, one study showed that the cumulative mean empathy sore in a community based Internal Medicine Residency program was high in the beginning of training, but decrease by the end of training [4]

This project aims to first assess the level of empathy in our Internal Medicine Residents, this will be followed by empathy training and reassessment.

METHODS: The assessment of empathy in Internal Medicine residents will be done using CARE Patient Feedback Measure. This will be followed by formulating ways to improve empathy during residency training, in accordance with GME’s requirement for interpersonal skills and communication. Short training sessions on neurobiology and physiology of empathy will be conducted to residents (all PGY levels), post empathy training, patients will assess residents using the same tool, CARE questionnaire, leading to pre and post CARE scores.

July 1st, 2023- Patients filling CARE questionnaire Sept- Questionnaire analysis

Oct- December 2023- Residents training on neurobiology and physiology of empathy

January 2024- Patients filling CARE questionnaire, results compared to the July 2023 CARE results.

EVALUATION PLAN: Comparison of pre and post CARE questionnaire scores.

SUMMARY OF RESULTS: The project is still in process

REFLECTIVE CRITIQUE: Ongoing project, in planning phase