Medical student empathy and breaking bad news communication in a simulated consultation
(2022) Patient Education and Counseling — Vol. 105, n° 5, p. 1342-1345 (2022)
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- Authors
Bennett, Deirdre 
- Abstract
- Objectives This study examined the relationship between self-reported empathy and breaking bad news (BBN) communication skills performance in a sample of undergraduate medical students (n = 100) in the clinical years of their program. Methods Correlational and regression analysis examined the relationship between Jefferson Scale of Physician Empathy (JSPE-S) and Empathy Quotient (EQ) scores, and communication skills performance based on students’ application of the SPIKES protocol to a BBN scenario in a simulated encounter. Results Higher BBN communication skills performance was positively correlated with scores on the “Social Skills” EQ sub-scale (r (99) = 0.31, p = 0.002), which measures spontaneous and context-independent use of social skills. Multiple regression confirmed that “Social Skills” sub-scale variation predicted BBN score variation (B = 2.17, 95% CI = 0.65–3.69, p < 0.01). A weak positive association was also observed between BBN score and the “Standing in Patient’s Shoes” JSPE sub-scale (r (99) = 0.22, p = 0.03). Conclusions Findings suggest that specific aspects of dispositional empathy may moderate BBN communications skills competence in medical students. Practice implications A better understanding of the moderating role of personality may lead to more tailored BBN communications skills training interventions and improved transfer of skills to workplace settings.
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Citations
Bukowski, H., Sweeney, C., Bennett, D., Rizzo, G., & O’Tuathaigh, C. M. P. (2022). Medical student empathy and breaking bad news communication in a simulated consultation. Patient Education and Counseling, 105(5), 1342-1345. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pec.2021.09.017 (Original work published 2022)