The Power of Empathy and Compassion in Your Healthcare Career

Personally, many of us have been there, requiring medical care and either wishing for, or being grateful for, the engaged and supportive response from a physician during our time of need or need of a loved one. There is something about a doctor, or any healthcare provider we encounter, who appears to truly ‘care’ about our situation that makes us feel somehow safer, as though we’re ‘in good hands’. This boosts our confidence in their ability to treat us and our hope in the positive outcome. It turns out that this isn’t just a fleeting feeling we have but is rooted in science-based evidence.

As you pursue a healthcare training program at a healthcare college and look to the future of how you will influence the wellbeing of others in any number of roles within the healthcare industry, this is essential for you to understand.

Healthcare courses in Canada or online healthcare training programs, truly need to have a keen understanding of the importance of empathy and compassion as they design curriculum and, to truly succeed in your profession, and experience less burnout, you need to demand this component in your education.

What, precisely, are empathy and compassion?

Empathy – While empathy is a complex, multifaceted, dynamic concept which has been described in the literature in many different ways, fundamentally, it is “the action of understanding, being aware of, being sensitive to, and vicariously experiencing the feelings, thoughts, and experience of another”.

Compassion is the “sympathetic consciousness of others’ distress together with a desire to alleviate it”.
While empathy and compassion both refer to the response we have when we care about someone’s situation, empathy allows us to imagine ourselves in that situation, while compassion spurs us on to do something about it, to take action and make a difference.

Why do empathy and compassion matter?

In life, these emotions impact our ability to build genuine relationships and can aid in the understanding and healing in our own lives and in those we love. In the healthcare industry, these engaged emotions allow for us, as the patient, to feel as though we matter, our situation matters and there is someone willing to support us in our time of distress. As a healthcare provider the ability to demonstrate empathy and compassion can mean the difference between a patient or client openly sharing and even recovering or not, and certainly the rate at which they heal.

What are the specific benefits of demonstrating empathy and compassion?

There are measurable and significant benefits to a healthcare professional empathetically engaging with patients/clients and compassionately caring for them. Here are just a few of the extraordinary effects that conscious care can have on another. It:

• Builds trust – This leads to a patient feeling the connection and comfort to honestly share personal history and information that ultimately impacts a healthcare providers’ ability to diagnose and treat with greater confidence. A patient who trusts is also more likely to follow the recommendations of that healthcare provider, from taking their medications consistently to following recommendations for self-care. And patients allowed to participate more fully in decision-making leads to their sense of autonomy and feeling they have an active role to play in their own recovery.
• Leads to greater insight – A healthcare provider’s ability to more actively listen, not only to what a patient is saying, but to recognize how they may be feeling and the nuances of their non-verbal communication, can lead to their ability to better support, treat and encourage compliance. This all leads to better outcomes for the patient and a surge of feeling effective for the healthcare professional, ultimately increasing job satisfaction.
• Enables a healthy personal relationship or bond to be formed – A person seeing that their healthcare provider is affected by their situation is powerful. A patient feeling as though they’re cared about and that they can trust and count on another, leads to a personal connection, this can mean less misunderstandings, less miscommunications, and a desire to listen and follow guidance.
• Impacts physical health and can speed up the healing process – Stress does nothing to aid in the process of recovery. Knowing that a healthcare provider has their best interests at heart, is doing all that can be done to help them heal and overcome, decreases some of the anxiety felt during difficult times. A greater sense of calm, trust, and bond with those providing caring can mean patients feel seen, heard, and truly cared for. It can lower blood pressure, aid in faster recuperation, even reduced pain, and shorter hospital stays. Empathy and kind, compassionate care … this helps all of us heal and thrive.
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As you explore health programs in Canada, or healthcare programs online, ensure that you select a college with a curriculum that includes training in these critical aspects of care. Your ability to understand and act with empathy and compassion can empower you to not only provide superior care to patients and clients but can increase the longevity and joy you experience in your career.

If you’re still determining how you can align your passion and interests with a career, take our “Anderson College Medical Professional Career Training Readiness Quiz”. If you’re ready to start your adventure in the healthcare field, or even in one of our other 30+ programs, our Admissions team can help. Book your express appointment today!

Quick Links to Fuel Your Success!

We want to make sure you have what you need to succeed! Check out these reference links:

• Healthcare Programs – Healthcare Administration & Wellness Program (andersoncollege.com)
• Why Work in Health Care? 8 Reasons To Consider a Career in Healthcare | Indeed.com
• Psychology Today – Empathy in Healthcare
• Top 5 Reasons to Work in Healthcare – Anderson College
• Healthcare Careers You Can Launch in 2 Years or Less – Anderson College