How can empathy help you build patient trust?
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Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another person. As a case manager, empathy can help you build patient trust, which is essential for effective care coordination, communication, and outcomes. In this article, you will learn how empathy can benefit your patient relationships, how to practice empathy skills, and how to overcome empathy challenges.
Empathy can help you build patient trust in several ways. First, empathy can show that you care about your patient as a whole person, not just a diagnosis or a case. This can make your patient feel valued, respected, and supported. Second, empathy can help you communicate better with your patient, by listening actively, asking open-ended questions, and using affirming language. This can help you understand your patient's needs, preferences, and goals, and tailor your care plan accordingly. Third, empathy can help you collaborate with your patient, by involving them in decision making, providing feedback, and addressing concerns. This can help you foster a partnership that empowers your patient to take charge of their health and well-being.
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Mr. Terron Gaiter MSW,MAEL,LISW-S,LICDC,ICADC
LISW-S with Executive Leadership Degree
Empathy is not so much a learned skill as it is an inherit trait. You either have it or you don’t. It’s ok either way, but having it is pretty much essential when working with clients in the medical and or mental health and substance abuse field. The reason that empathy is so important is because of the simple fact that you know when you’re empathizing with client it’s basically showing them that you are human as well as you have experienced similar things as they have and that you can empathize and sympathize with them, and understand like how they might feel and being in the moment with them. The importance of empathy is that client rapport is built 9/10 because you are normalizing their situation and showing you care.
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Max A.
Empathy, or as Carl Rogers called it, accurate empathic understanding, communicates to the client that I, as the therapist, know "what it's like" to be her. If I can communicate this understanding to the client, he will feel heard and seen and will believe that I can maybe know something of the nature of his suffering. Trust involves courage, a "leap of faith," on the part of the client because she can never truly know if I understand. Empathy encourages the client to take that leap, to believe that I want to know him as he knows himself and that I can help him make changes that will lead to the relief of suffering. In short, empathy is the currency that buys trust.
Empathy is not a trait you are born with, but rather a skill that can be developed and improved through practice. As a case manager, you can hone your empathy skills by engaging in perspective-taking, emotional regulation, and empathic communication. Perspective-taking involves attempting to understand the situation from the patient's point of view, without imposing your own assumptions or judgments. Emotional regulation is the ability to manage your own emotions when dealing with challenging situations. Empathic communication includes expressing empathy verbally and non-verbally with words, tone, body language, and gestures. Practicing statements such as "I hear you", "I understand", "I appreciate", and "I'm here for you" can help you become more adept at empathic communication. With practice, you can become better at recognizing and responding to the needs of your patients.
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Jennifer See, LPC, LCDC, NCC
Mental Health & Substance Use and Abuse
The most empathetic person needs to watch for signs of burnout - in themselves! Having a lot of empathy for people leads to compassion fatigue, especially in the helping professions. Taking care of yourself is important while you take care of others.
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Rebecca Fernandes
Founder at Edtrainment | Emotional Intelligence Coach ✨ |Podcaster @Audio Skill Capsule Podcast 🎙️ | Certified Corporate Trainer 🚀
Empathy is a learnable skill. In order to become more empathetic, we must understand the 3 levels of empathy: - Cognitive Empathy (Understanding the other's perspectives & thoughts) - Emotional Empathy (understanding what the opposite person is feeling) - Compassionate Empathy (understanding the opposite person's situation & offering to help them) It's important to embark on the journey of becoming empathetic by first working on cognitive empathy followed by the rest. You can also practice become more empathetic by: Actively listening to the patient, providing a non judgmental & safe environment for communication, validating their concerns & emotions, encouraging open ended conversations. They key mantra, 'Patience before Judgement'.
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Empathy is not always easy or comfortable, and there are certain challenges that can hinder it. Bias is the tendency to favor or dislike certain groups or individuals based on stereotypes or prejudices, and can be overcome by being aware of your own attitudes and beliefs, and challenging them with facts and evidence. Burnout is the state of physical, mental, and emotional exhaustion caused by chronic stress or workload, but can be prevented by setting boundaries, prioritizing self-care, and seeking help when needed. Compassion fatigue is the loss of empathy or compassion due to repeated exposure to trauma or suffering, but can be managed by recognizing the signs, finding meaning in your work, and cultivating a support network. Empathy is a powerful tool that can help you build patient trust as a case manager. By understanding the benefits, practicing the skills, and overcoming the challenges of empathy, you can enhance your patient relationships and improve your care quality and satisfaction.
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Sarah O'Brien, LCSW, LCSW-C
Trauma-Informed Consultant , Coach, and Psychotherapist. Subject Matter Expert & Social Impact Catalyst . Writer and Content Creator. Collaborator. Professional Community Engagement and Changemaker. Trauma Survivor.
Another challenge to engaging in empathy and displaying empathy is proper communication around empathy. Understanding human-centered communication is key to managing bias and assumptions and effectively letting someone else know you empathize with them. Empathy is not necessarily intuitive, however it can be learned. Same with communicating and displaying empathy towards others, not necessarily intuitive, yet a skill that can be learned, practiced, and then put into place whenever working with people. Trauma-informed communication and action skills should be assessed for every human service provider, without this, we all run the risk of causing more harm for patients.
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Kathleen Wallace, Ph.D., LPC-S (AR and TX), NCC
Clinical Director | Mental Health Leader | Qualitative Researcher | Interviews | Human Insight Analysis | Project Management | Cross Functional Collaborations | Gardening
One challenge is being careful to maintain objective empathy that can maintain professional distance as mandated in ethics. We cannot become personally connected or invested in clients as this can lead to sympathy (as in pity) or even worse, a dual relationship. This removes objectivity and opens the door for communication or relationships outside of the professional domain, which risks harming the client and creates liability for the professional.