LEVELS OF EMPATHY: A COMPARISON BETWEEN MEDICAL STUDENTS AND PRACTICING DOCTORS

• DOI: https://doi.org/10.22533/at.ed.159582528016

• Palavras-chave: Empathy; Doctor-patient relationships; Quality of care.

• Keywords: Empathy; Doctor-patient relationships; Quality of care.

• Abstract:

  Empathy consists of identifying and understanding the patient's feelings, thereby increasing trust in the relationship between doctor and patient and allowing a shift from treatment focused solely on the disease to the patient. It is considered a virtue that can be developed and learned.  The level of understanding of empathy by medical students in different periods was analyzed and compared with practicing medical professionals. The survey included 95 total respondents, 77.9% of whom were medical students and 22.1% medical professionals. The analysis was carried out by means of questionnaires using the Jefferson Likert scale (JSPE-S), in which the values measuring the strength of the empathy level range from 1 to 7. The final solution was calculated using the statistical tool Rstudio, the R language and the Likert toolbox package. The results obtained were divided into different factors, such as empathetic behavior, the ability to understand the other person from their perspective, social determinants and interpersonal relationships. The study showed that students and doctors understand and agree with the importance of empathy in patient care. For the empathic behavior factor, the participants in the survey showed high levels of perception of empathy, ranging from 70% to 89% for students and from 81% to 100% for doctors. Empathy used as a "therapeutic tool" is understood as a positive aid in various aspects of the clinical relationship.