Empathy among male and female medical professionals: A cross-sectional study

Abstract

Background: The measurable index for selflessness in medical professionals is empathy with patients. Thus, the relationship between a doctor and a patient is mainly based on empathy. Several studies measured the empathy scores before and after medical education and there are ambiguous results. Aims and Objectives: The present study was undertaken to assess the empathy among medical professionals in a tertiary care institute in North-east India. Materials and Methods: Three hundred undergraduate students were part of the study. Willing participants were recruited for the study. The standard tool to assess the empathy JSE-S was used in the study. This tool consists of 20 questions. Results: The empathy scores of female participants were significantly higher compared to male participants (P<0.0001). In both the residences wise that is a hostel and home, female participants’ empathy scores were higher than males (P<0.0001). Conclusion: The study explains higher empathy scores in both male and female students. In comparison, females are having higher scores than males. The study highlights need for future multicentric studies in this area to better understand the empathy of medical students and plan the curriculum accordingly.

Keywords

• medical students; empathy; physicians; patient satisfaction