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- The empathy gap
“Clinical empathy can thus be defined as the physician’s ability to understand the patient’s illness experience, communicate this understanding, and act on it to create a collaborative treatment plan with the patient”
The question they asked the patient to reference in their response was,
“We would like to talk about your physician’s ability to understand your illness experience, their ability to communicate that understanding to you, AND their ability to act on that understanding when providing care “
In the responses, doctors were described as being mechanical and exhibiting frustration with the patient’s lack of progress.
“Doctor not listening”
“Seeing the patient as a disease, not a person”
“Patient blaming”
And that's just for starters.
So I think we can be pretty comfortable replacing the word doctor with dentist and expect something similar to apply to our profession.
After all, dental caries and periodontal disease are common chronic diseases. So if we want to help our patients manage their oral health, we need to pay attention to this.
We can get caught up in the treatment plan, the procedures we need to do, whether they are full mouth rehabs, courses on periodontal disease, all on X; or a simple treatment plan for a couple of fillings.
If you’re paying off student loans or a business overhead, there is a risk of looking at the patients as “proposed treatment” rather than Janet or Simon who need support with behaviour change and help with their oral health. This attitude can begin in dental school, where we are all looking for a range of experience porior to graduation.
The patient with the worn dentition, or periodontal disease, did not develop the problem overnight so perceiving it as fixed by a course of treatment, even if it is extensive, is short term thinking. The work really begins in the maintenance phase of continually motivating the patient in a compassionate and encouraging manner.
And that doesn't mean a lesson on flossing. It's about employing effective health coaching skills, to meet the patient where they are and take things at their pace. In other words, building a long term trusting relationship with the patient.
No matter what type of dentist you are, how swish your practice, or high end your service, maintaining the trust of your patient is what will bring you success, both personal and professional.
“Sympathy has to do with sharing emotions but is still focused on the individual who is sympathising, rather than truly seeking to understand another’s perspective. To empathise—to fully understand an individual’s perspective that drives not just what they feel but how they think—requires understanding and development”
Have a great week
Rosie
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