Few healthcare interventions have as much impact on a person’s physical and emotional well-being as empathy. Empathy is a basic component of therapeutic relationships and a key factor in patients’ definitions of quality care. There is compelling research about the benefits of empathic interactions with patients including: decreased levels of depression, anxiety, distress; and increased levels of emotional wellbeing, motivation, satisfaction and adherence to treatment regimens. Empathic encounters with healthcare professionals have also been linked to a range of improved physiological outcomes such as improved tissue healing, immunity, cancer survival rates; and a reduction in diabetic complications, blood pressure and pain.
However, the relationship between empathy and attitudes to stigmatised groups is of concern with evidence indicating that vulnerable patient groups frequently experience healthcare interactions that are devoid of empathy. For example, a lack of empathy has been demonstrated in interactions between healthcare professionals and people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds; Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People; people with a physical or intellectual disability; people experiencing a mental illness; socio-economically disadvantaged groups; people with lifestyle related illnesses (such as cirrhosis of the liver or obesity), and older people.
Empathy is a key mediator of prejudice reduction and an emerging body of research indicates that educational interventions specifically targeting empathy are key to promoting understanding and changing the attitudes of healthcare professionals towards the care of vulnerable and stigmatised patient groups.
Healthcare is more than the sum of its parts. All healthcare professionals must be knowledgeable, clinically astute and able to provide empathic care ~ Francis, 2013.
Against this background, the Virtual Empathy Museum (VEM) was created. The overarching objective of the VEM was to design a repository of open-access evidence-based curriculum resources to enhance healthcare students’ and clinicians’ empathy skills. The project had four specific aims:
This project was funded by an Australian Technology Network (ATN) Strategic Initiative Grant.