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Interventions to cultivate physician empathy: a systematic review.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Physician empathy is both theoretically and empirically critical to patient health, but research indicates that empathy declines throughout medical school and is lower than ideal among physicians. In this paper, we synthesize the published literature regarding interventions that were quantitatively evaluated to detect changes in empathy among medical students, residents, fellows and physicians. METHODS: We systematically searched PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science and PsychINFO in June of 2014 to identify articles that quantitatively assessed changes in empathy due to interventions among medical students, residents, fellows and physicians. RESULTS: Of the 1,415 articles identified, 64 met inclusion criteria. We qualitatively synthesized the findings of qualified studies by extracting data for ten study metrics: 1) source population, 2) sample size, 3) control group, 4) random assignment, 5) intervention type, 6) intervention duration, 7) assessment strategy, 8) type of outcome measure, 9) outcome assessment time frame, and 10) whether a statistically significant increase in empathy was reported. Overall, the 64 included studies were characterized by relatively poor research designs, insufficient reporting of intervention procedures, low incidence of patient-report empathy assessment measures, and inadequate evaluations of long-term efficacy. 8 of 10 studies with highly rigorous designs, however, found that targeted interventions did increase empathy. CONCLUSIONS: Physician empathy appears to be an important aspect of patient and physician well-being. Although the current empathy intervention literature is limited by a variety of methodological weaknesses, a sample of high-quality study designs provides initial support for the notion that physician empathy can be enhanced through interventions. Future research should strive to increase the sample of high-quality designs through more randomized, controlled studies with valid measures, explicit reporting of intervention strategies and procedures, and long-term efficacy assessments.

SUBMITTER: Kelm Z

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4201694 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Interventions to cultivate physician empathy: a systematic review.

Kelm Zak Z Womer James J Walter Jennifer K JK Feudtner Chris C

BMC medical education 20141014

<h4>Background</h4>Physician empathy is both theoretically and empirically critical to patient health, but research indicates that empathy declines throughout medical school and is lower than ideal among physicians. In this paper, we synthesize the published literature regarding interventions that were quantitatively evaluated to detect changes in empathy among medical students, residents, fellows and physicians.<h4>Methods</h4>We systematically searched PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science and PsychI ...[more]

PMID: 25315848

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Project description:BackgroundCompassion in healthcare provides measurable benefits to patients, physicians, and healthcare systems. However, data regarding the factors that predict care (and a lack of care) are scattered. This study systematically reviews biomedical literature within the Transactional Model of Physician Compassion and synthesizes evidence regarding the predictors of physician empathy, compassion, and related constructs (ECRC).MethodsA systematic literature search was conducted in CENTRAL, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, EMBASE, CINAHL, AMED, OvidJournals, ProQuest, Web of Science, and Scopus using search terms relating to ECRC and its predictors. Eligible studies included physicians as participants. Methodological quality was assessed based on the Cochrane Handbook, using ROBINS-I risk of bias tool for quantitative and CASP for qualitative studies. Confidence in findings was evaluated according to GRADE-CERQual approach.ResultsOne hundred fifty-two included studies (74,866 physicians) highlighted the diversity of influences on compassion in healthcare (54 unique predictors). Physician-related predictors (88%) were gender, experience, values, emotions and coping strategies, quality of life, and burnout. Environmental predictors (38%) were organizational structure, resources, culture, and clinical environment and processes. Patient-related predictors (24%) were communication ease, and physicians' perceptions of patients' motives; compassion was also less forthcoming with lower SES and minority patients. Evidence related to clinical predictors (15%) was scarce; high acuity presentations predicted greater ECRC.DiscussionThe growth of evidence in the recent years reflects ECRC's ongoing importance. However, evidence remains scattered, concentrates on physicians' factors that may not be amenable to interventions, lacks designs permitting causal commentary, and is limited by self-reported outcomes. Inconsistent findings in the direction of the predictors' effects indicate the need to study the relationships among predictors to better understand the mechanisms of ECRCs. The current review can guide future research and interventions.

Project description:BackgroundMedications for the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease save lives but adherence is often inadequate. The optimal role for physicians in improving adherence remains unclear.ObjectiveUsing existing evidence, we set the goal of evaluating the physician's role in improving medication adherence.DesignWe conducted systematic searches of English-language peer-reviewed publications in MEDLINE and EMBASE from 1966 through 12/31/2008.Subjects and interventionsWe selected randomized controlled trials of interventions to improve adherence to medications used for preventing or treating cardiovascular disease or diabetes.Main measuresArticles were classified as either (1) physician "active"-a physician participated in designing or implementing the intervention; (2) physician "passive"-physicians treating intervention group patients received patient adherence information while physicians treating controls did not; or (3) physicians noninvolved. We also identified studies in which healthcare professionals helped deliver the intervention. We did a meta-analysis of the studies involving healthcare professionals to determine aggregate Cohen's D effect sizes (ES).Key resultsWe identified 6,550 articles; 168 were reviewed in full, 82 met inclusion criteria. The majority of all studies (88.9%) showed improved adherence. Physician noninvolved studies were more likely (35.0% of studies) to show a medium or large effect on adherence compared to physician-involved studies (31.3%). Among interventions requiring a healthcare professional, physician-noninvolved interventions were more effective (ES 0.47; 95% CI 0.38-0.56) than physician-involved interventions (ES 0.25; 95% CI 0.21-0.29; p < 0.001). Among physician-involved interventions, physician-passive interventions were marginally more effective (ES 0.29; 95% CI 0.22-0.36) than physician-active interventions (ES 0.23; 95% CI 0.17-0.28; p = 0.2).ConclusionsAdherence interventions utilizing non-physician healthcare professionals are effective in improving cardiovascular medication adherence, but further study is needed to identify the optimal role for physicians.

Project description:Introduction: A compassionate and patient-centered care leads to improved clinical outcomes. Promoting empathy and compassion of medical students is a forerunner of their well-being, emotional stability, and a patient-centered care. However, there is slender evidence about best educational interventions that can inculcate empathy and compassion skills. Our objective was to conduct a systematic review of research evaluating the associations between spectrum, effectiveness, frequency of teaching modalities and their outcomes on compassion and empathy to highlight best practices. Methods: We searched the Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, and EBSCO Host on 22nd July 2020. We adapted our search strategy from a previously published systematic review on education for compassion and empathy. Selected studies were required to have used unique educational interventions for promoting empathy and compassion of medical students. The research questions were based on Participants (medical students), Intervention (empathy and/or compassion related teaching), Comparison, and Outcome. Results: We analyzed 24 articles from the initial yield of 2,861. Twenty-two were quantitative studies with a mean of 12.8 on MERSQI. Twelve were randomized controlled trials while 5 measured outcomes with single group pre- and post-tests. There was no association found between duration, frequency and complexity of an educational intervention and its effectiveness. Twenty used multimodality curricula, and of those 18 reported statistically significant positive improvement in empathy, while 3 of 4 single modality were effective. Only three studies looked for long-term effects of educational interventions. Fourteen studies evaluated Kirkpatrick's level one (self-reported knowledge), 2 level three (behavior), and 6 level four (patient outcomes). We identified six major educational constructs of teaching empathy and compassion; communication, mindfulness, early clinical exposure, technology-enhanced learning, comics and arts and culture. Discussion: Our review couldn't identify a standard teaching construct in place and highlighted that different teaching tools carry similar impact in promoting compassion and empathy and a sustainable program rather than a single training activity is essential.

Project description:OBJECTIVE:Interventions informed by behavioral economics have the potential to change behaviors governed by underlying cognitive biases. This has been explored extensively for various use in healthcare including changing patient behavior and, more recently, physician behavior. We aimed to systematically review the literature on the use and effectiveness of behavioral economics-informed interventions in changing physician behavior. METHOD:We searched Medline, Cochrane Library, EBM Reviews, PsychINFO, EconLit, Business Source Complete and Web of Science for peer-reviewed studies published in English that examined the effectiveness of behavioral economics-informed interventions on physician behavioral change. We included studies of physicians in all care settings and specialties and all types of objectively measured behavioral outcomes. The reporting quality of included studies was appraised using the Effective Public Health Practice Project tool. RESULTS:We screened 6,439 studies and included 17 studies that met our criteria, involving at least 9,834 physicians. The majority of studies were conducted in the United States, published between 2014 and 2018, and were in the patient safety and quality domain. Reporting quality of included studies included strong (n = 7), moderate (n = 6) and weak (n = 4). Changing default settings and providing social reference points were the most widely studied interventions, with these studies consistently demonstrating their effectiveness in changing physician behavior despite differences in implementation methods among studies. Prescribing behavior was most frequently targeted in included studies, with consistent effectiveness of studied interventions. CONCLUSION:Changing default settings and providing social reference points were the most frequently studied and consistently effective interventions in changing physician behavior towards guideline-concordant practices. Additional theory-informed research is needed to better understand the mechanisms underlying the effectiveness of these interventions to guide implementation.

Project description:BACKGROUND:The uptake of guideline recommendations that improve heart failure (HF) outcomes remains suboptimal. We reviewed implementation interventions that improve physician adherence to these recommendations, and identified contextual factors associated with implementation success. METHODS:We searched databases from January 1990 to November 2017 for studies testing interventions to improve uptake of class I HF guidelines. We used the Cochrane Effective Practice and Organisation of Care and Process Redesign frameworks for data extraction. Primary outcomes included: proportion of eligible patients offered guideline-recommended pharmacotherapy, self-care education, left ventricular function assessment and/or intracardiac devices. We reported clinical outcomes when available. RESULTS:We included 38 studies. Provider-level interventions (n=13 studies) included audit and feedback, reminders and education. Organisation-level interventions (n=18) included medical records system changes, multidisciplinary teams, clinical pathways and continuity of care. System-level interventions (n=3) included provider/institutional incentives. Four studies assessed multi-level interventions. We could not perform meta-analyses due to statistical/conceptual heterogeneity. Thirty-two studies reported significant improvements in at least one primary outcome. Clinical pathways, multidisciplinary teams and multifaceted interventions were most consistently successful in increasing physician uptake of guidelines. Among randomised controlled trials (RCT) (n=10), pharmacist and nurse-led interventions improved target dose prescriptions. Eleven studies reported clinical outcomes; significant improvements were reported in three, including a clinical pathway, a multidisciplinary team and a multifaceted intervention. Baseline assessment of barriers, staff training, iterative intervention development, leadership commitment and policy/financial incentives were associated with intervention effectiveness. Most studies (n=20) had medium risk of bias; nine RCTs had low risk of bias. CONCLUSION:Our study is limited by the quality and heterogeneity of the primary studies. Clinical pathways, multidisciplinary teams and multifaceted interventions appear to be most consistent in increasing guideline uptake. However, improvements in process outcomes were rarely accompanied by improvements in clinical outcomes. Our work highlights the need for improved research methodology to reliably assess the effectiveness of implementation interventions.

Project description:BackgroundIncreased empathy may improve patient perceptions and outcomes. No training tool has been derived to teach empathy to emergency care providers. Accordingly, we engaged patients to assist in creating a concept map to teach empathy to emergency care providers.MethodsWe recruited patients, patient caretakers and patient advocates with emergency department experience to participate in three separate focus groups (n = 18 participants). Facilitators guided discussion about behaviors that physicians should demonstrate to rapidly create trust; enhance patient perception that the physician understood the patient's point of view, needs, concerns, and fears; and optimize patient/caregiver understanding of their experience. Verbatim transcripts from the three focus groups were read by the authors, and by consensus, five major themes with 10 minor themes were identified. After creating a codebook with thematic definitions, one author reviewed all transcripts to a library of verbatim excerpts coded by theme. To test for inter-rater reliability, two other authors similarly coded a random sample of 40% of the transcripts. Authors independently chose excerpts that represented consensus and strong emotional responses from participants.ResultsApproximately 90% of opinions and preferences fell within 15 themes, with five central themes: provider transparency, acknowledgment of patient's emotions, provider disposition, trust in physician, and listening. Participants also highlighted the need for authenticity, context, and individuality to enhance empathic communication. For empathy map content, patients offered example behaviors that promote perceptions of physician warmth, respect, physical touch, knowledge of medical history, explanation of tests, transparency, and treating patients as partners. The resulting concept map was named the "Empathy Circle."ConclusionsFocus group participants emphasized themes and tangible behaviors to improve empathy in emergency care. These were incorporated into the Empathy Circle, a novel concept map that can serve as the framework to teach empathy to emergency care providers.

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Interventions to cultivate physician empathy: a systematic review.

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Interventions to cultivate physician empathy: a systematic review.

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