Empathy Training in Health Professions Education: A Systematic Review

Empathy is fundamental to patient-centered care but frequently diminishes during clinical training. To inform medical education, we conducted a systematic review (PRISMA-2020-compliant) of interventions aimed at augmenting empathy in healthcare learners. We searched the PubMed, EMBASE, PsycINFO, CINAHL, ERIC, and Cochrane CENTRAL databases from the beginning of time until January 2026 for trials and pre- and post-studies that looked at empathy outcomes. Two reviewers evaluated the studies (κ = 0.86) and extracted data regarding participants, intervention format, and outcomes. Our initial search yielded 2056 records. After removing duplicates, 1250 titles and abstracts were screened, resulting in the inclusion of 43 studies from 2010 to 2026. The majority of studies reported improvements in empathy post-intervention, based on both self-report measures and observational assessments. Interventions that included active learning methods like role-playing, standardized patient encounters, narrative medicine, art workshops, and mindfulness led to much better improvements in empathy than passive, lecture-based methods. Long-term, multimodal programs that included communication skills training, reflective exercises, and patient contact were better than classes that only met once. Nonetheless, many studies used different, sometimes untested, empathy measures, and the follow-up period was often short. Our review demonstrates that empathy can be imparted through evidence-based curricular approaches. We advocate for the incorporation of prolonged, experiential empathy training into health professions education, alongside the standardization of outcome assessment. These results make it clear which teaching methods work best and point out areas where more research is needed.