Browsing by Author "Chhabra, Namrata"
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- ItemMedical students’ perspectives on the development of empathy and its determinants during their undergraduate training(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2020-11) Chhabra, Namrata; Archer, Elize; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences. Centre for Health Professions Education.ENGLISH SUMMARY: BACKGROUND: Empathy is a crucial component of clinical practice and professionalism. Several medical institutes and professional organisations now encourage empathy in medical students. However, studies have reported that empathy erosion occurs during medical training and that medical students demonstrate a decrease in self-reported empathy during their studies. AIM OF THE STUDY: This study aimed to explore medical students’ perspectives on the development of empathy during their undergraduate training. METHODOLOGY: A descriptive phenomenological approach was used to generate illustrations of empathy development and decline that had educational significance and applicability. Individual online semi-structured interviews were conducted to elicit experiential details from twelve final-year medical students. The interview recordings were transcribed verbatim, and data were analysed employing Braun and Clarke’s (2006) thematic analysis method. RESULTS: Most of the students defined empathy as having four interrelated and overlapping dimensions: cognitive, affective, behavioural, and moral. They believed that empathising with patients was a bidirectional relational process. A notable finding of this study was that the empathic behaviour of medical students had improved over time in the medical school, contrary to the empathy decline reported by several researchers. They attributed their empathy development to real patient encounters, positive role-modelling by teachers, and attainment of confidence, personal maturity, and emotional regulation in their behaviours. Students identified exams, academic overload, time constraints, personal stresses, negative role models, unconducive learning environments, lack of formal empathy training, and emphasis on the biomedical aspect of the curriculum as barriers to the development of empathy. They recommended early clinical exposure, increased patient contact, formal empathy training, and introduction of medical humanities in the curriculum to improve their empathic behaviour with patients. CONCLUSION: Empathy is more than a personal attribute; this multifaceted, bidirectional relational process is affected by a multitude of factors. Medical institutes should identify and address the barriers to empathy development and encourage the holistic development of medical students. Medical educators should model their behaviour accurately for their increasing roles and responsibilities and support the students in their empathic expressions with patients.