Empathy in Occupational Therapy: A Call for Reflection

Empathy is a building block in health care professions and it has been studied for decades in social and medical sciences given its significant role in health care outcomes and client satisfaction. In a climate where societies are congested with ideological conflicts, sociopolitical issues, racism, microaggressions, and bias, we must reflect on how we are preparing our students and future occupational therapists to be empathetic communicators and clinicians. We must also capture the evolution of empathy in new generations of occupational therapy students in the era of sociopolitical change, telehealth practices, and remote learning. Empathy decline is a documented trend in health care, especially in stigmatized groups, marginalized communities, refugees, non-English speaking patients, and stigmatized patient populations. With the revived urge to embrace anti-racist education, diversity, equity, and inclusion across health care professions, it is time to reflect on empathy in occupational therapy. In this paper, we discuss the construct of empathy and its role in building rapport in therapeutic relationships. We reflect on how we address empathy in occupational therapy education, practice, and research. We briefly discuss the growing trend of empathy decline in health care and its relationship to occupational therapy education and practice. We end by offering a few practical suggestions to bolster the construct of empathy in occupational therapy areas of education, clinical practice, and research.