Physicians’ empathy toward patients at a private medical college, Manipur: a cross-sectional study

Background: According to The Society of General Internal Medicine, empathy is defined as ‘the act of correctly acknowledging the emotional state of another without experiencing that state oneself’. Empathy appears to be beneficial for both the doctor and patient according to studies findings. There is significant paucity of studies on this topic in India and in Manipur also. Hence the study was proposed to understand the empathy level of medical professionals towards patients. Methods: The study was a cross-sectional study conducted at Shija Academy of Health Sciences, Langol, Manipur, from August to September 2023. It was done among all the doctors involved in patient care services. A validated self-administered questionnaire of the Jefferson scale of physician empathy (JSPE) was used. Results: A total of 117 participants took part in the study. Mean age of participants was 36±11.52 years. The mean score of empathy was 106±15.27. “Perspective taking” component score was 54.38 out of 70 and “compassionate care” component score was 41.85 out of 56. Average score of physicians “filling in patients’ shoes” component was 10.46 out of 14. There was statistically significant association between age and designation of the physicians to the empathy score. Conclusions: The empathy level among the participants was a little more than three-fourth of the total score. This study can provide important implications in uplifting the quality of health services by the doctors.