Enhancing empathy among medical students via reflective writing
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.36834/cmej.77172Abstract
Implication Statement
Reflection is a skill which has the potential to enhance higher order thinking such as empathy and compassion. We aimed to study reflective writing as a means to nurture empathy among medical students. An interventional study was conducted among 73 final-year medical students using the Toronto Empathy Questionnaire. The questionnaire was administered anonymously before and after a clinical clerkship. Reflective writing generated strong emotional responses but did not improve Empathy Questionnaire scores. Reflective writing about patient care experiences may be useful in clinical clerkships to develop certain constructs of empathy such as perspective taking and compassion among medical students, but it may not raise empathy scores in the short term.
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Copyright (c) 2023 Muhammad Jawad Hashim, Moien AB Khan, Alexander Kieu, Fatima Khalfan Salem Alkaabi, Fakhra Abdulla Ali Al Rubaei, Maitha Khamis Bakhit Alfazari, Meera Khalfan Mohammed Alrubaei, Rouda Saeed Mohammed Alsaedi, Romona Govender
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