As medical school students gain knowledge for patient healing, an important quality seems to fade: empathy.
According to a study by Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, “a significant reduction in degrees of empathy was observed when comparing students in the first two years with those in the third and fourth years of medical schools.
Empathy is an attribute that implies the ability to understand the patient’s pain, suffering and perspective, combined with the ability to communicate this understanding and the intention to help, ”according to Mohammadreza Hojat, who created the Jefferson Empathy Scale in 2001.
Hojat examined more than 10,000 students enrolled at 41 of 48 campuses with doctoral programs in osteopathy from medical schools in the United States between 2017 and 2018.
Osteopathic physicians are licensed physicians who practice in all areas of medicine, according to the American Association of Osteopathic Medical Schools, and empathy is an important part of their programs.
“By emphasizing a comprehensive approach to treatment and care, osteopathic physicians are trained to listen and collaborate with patients to help them stay healthy and well,” according to the American Osteopathic Association.
In the study, women scored higher in empathy than male students. African Americans score higher than white students and Asian Americans score lower. But they all show a decline in that third year.
“As students progress through medical school, the empathic relationship in caring for patients is expected to improve. Apparently that is not the case, ”Hojat said.
Studies of students seeking a medical degree in one of the 154 programs across the country reflect the same decline in empathy in later years of medical school.
Why is empathy declining among medical students?
“More research is needed to examine the changes in empathy in longitudinal studies and explore the reasons for the changes to avoid the erosion of empathy in medical school,” the study concluded.
A 2017 study, calling empathy a “socio-emotional construct,” questions that there is a decline, and says that quality should be assessed in more varied ways.
In the medical journal STAT, Dr. Lawrence G. Smith said that the COVID-19 pandemic will cause doctors to have a greater sense of empathy.
“As my students and others across the country take their patient monitoring tours in a hospital, they will possibly notice that while an infectious disease like COVID-19 affects people, regardless of race, wealth or education, its impact varies widely by socioeconomic status, ”Smith wrote.
“That understanding can and should change everything about the way medical students perceive their profession, as well as everything about how future generations of doctors will be trained,” he continued.
In an email to Voice of america Hojat said empathy should be considered when evaluating student applications for medical schools.
“The empathy assessment should be used as a criterion for the selection of applicants to medical schools, and that they receive training to be doctors who care about patients,” he said.
Hojat’s most recent study was published in June in the Journal of the American Association of Medical Universities.
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