Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 19, 2025
14:32
Using Visual and Narrative Methods to Achieve Fair Process in Clinical Care
Published on: February 16, 2011
24.2K
Compassionate Care: Making It a Priority and the Science Behind It.
1Seattle Children's Hospital and the University of Washington, Seattle, WA.
Journal of Pediatric Orthopedics
|June 6, 2020
Summary
Compassion and empathy are innate human abilities that can be learned and modified. Understanding their neuroscience can improve clinical care and reduce clinician burnout.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Social Science
- Clinical Care
Background:
- Compassion involves recognizing suffering and desiring to alleviate it.
- Evidence on whether compassion is innate, acquired, or modifiable was previously lacking.
- Compassionate healthcare is linked to improved patient clinical outcomes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore the scientific basis of compassion and empathy.
- To understand how compassion influences clinical care.
- To identify methods for incorporating compassion into healthcare delivery.
Main Methods:
- A comprehensive review of social and neuroscience research was conducted.
Main Results:
- Neuroimaging reveals neural networks for empathy and compassion (insula, cingulate, prefrontal cortices).
- Empathy and compassion are present in all individuals studied and can be taught.
- Expression of empathy and compassion is influenced by internal and external factors.
Conclusions:
- Clinician burnout may stem from empathic pain without the ability to act compassionately.
- Understanding the neuroscience of empathy and compassion can inform burnout mitigation strategies.
- This knowledge can foster more compassionate healthcare environments.
Related Concept Videos
01:13Patient-centered Care
2.8K
Patient-centered care involves delivering care beyond inpatient hospitalization. Reflective practice can enhance a patient-centered approach. Reflective practice is a process of reasoning that considers all aspects of the present situation, including practicalities, learning from personal practice, and consideration of patient needs. Patients appreciate care decisions made while considering their input. Involving the patient in their care provides the patient with a sense of contribution rather...
2.8K
01:27Ethical Issues
1.8K
Nurses are essential in patient care, upholding the ethical principles of their profession and effectively navigating ethical dilemmas. Neglecting ethical issues can lead to inadequate patient care, compromised therapeutic relationships, and moral distress among healthcare workers.
Ethical Concerns in Healthcare:
Ethical Concerns in Healthcare:
1.8K
01:25Continuing Care
1.8K
Continuing care describes the variety of health, personal, and social services provided over a prolonged period. The need for continuing care is increasing because people are living longer. Many people do not have families or others to care for them. Continuing care is mainly for patients who are disabled, functionally dependent, or suffering from a terminal disease. It is available within institutional settings or in homes. Examples include nursing centers or facilities, assisted living,...
1.8K
01:21Interdisciplinary Care: The Health Care Team-I
2.4K
An interdisciplinary team includes many healthcare professionals working together and utilizing their skills, knowledge, and expertise to provide holistic and quality patient care.
Physicians
The physician's primary responsibility is to diagnose illness and direct the medical or surgical treatment of the condition. The authority to admit patients to a healthcare agency or institution and practice care within that setting is granted to physicians by the healthcare agency or institution...
Physicians
The physician's primary responsibility is to diagnose illness and direct the medical or surgical treatment of the condition. The authority to admit patients to a healthcare agency or institution and practice care within that setting is granted to physicians by the healthcare agency or institution...
2.4K
01:15Techniques of therapeutic communication I: Active Listening, Sharing Observations, Validation, and Using Touch
7.1K
The history of therapeutic communication can be traced back to Florence Nightingale, who emphasized the importance of developing trusting relationships with patients. She taught that the presence of nurses with patients results in therapeutic healing.
Therapeutic communication is not the same as social interaction. Social interaction has no goal or purpose and consists of casual information sharing, whereas therapeutic communication has a plan or purpose for the conversation. Therapeutic...
Therapeutic communication is not the same as social interaction. Social interaction has no goal or purpose and consists of casual information sharing, whereas therapeutic communication has a plan or purpose for the conversation. Therapeutic...
7.1K
01:29Documentation in Long-Term and Home Healthcare Setting
1.4K
Documentation in long-term care facilities and home healthcare settings is crucial for ensuring continuous, coordinated, and comprehensive care for patients. Each setting has its specific documentation processes and tools:
Long-Term Care Facilities
Long-Term Care Facilities
1.4K