Is there an endless blackhole of empathy towards patients or is there a limit to the amount before we fatigue? Empathy is defined as the ability to understand and share the feelings of another (Oxford, n.d.). Medical Professionals are expected to show empathy to each patient that they see to establish a good rapport and to allow the patient not to feel alone in the fight for the rehabilitation of their condition. Statistics from 2003 showed that a Physiotherapist on average sees about 19 patients a day (Steenkamp, Warren, Kruger, Boghosi & Semple, 2003). According to the University of the Western Cape Physiotherapy Clinical Guidelines book, students will see a maximum 8 patients during a clinical day (University of the Western Cape Physiotherapy Department, 2019). Eight patients that deserve an equal amount of empathy and effective treatment within the allocated time frame. This constant need for empathy towards patients has many effects on the Medical Professional, one of these effects is emphatic fatigue or compassion fatigue. Compassion fatigue is defined as a state of exhaustion and dysfunction biologically, psychologically, and socially as a result of prolonged exposure to compassion stress and all it invokes. (Cocker & Joss, 2016).
Seeking Serenity by Yi-Chia Lee (2019) was created for Mental Health Awareness Week at the University of the Free State. Although the theme that it was created for is not how I view the artwork, it is highly relatable when considering Empathy within the clinical environment. The artworks build on each other and are viewed as a whole to voice a story of the emotion that Health Professionals experience. The 1st painting shows how we create a rapport with our patients and how their story will affect our treatment and progression based on their condition and situation. The 2nd painting represents how our minds are filled with each patients’ story and how they are affected. This also represents how we feel at the end of the day due to the fact that we are constantly being empathetic towards our patients but by doing this are we losing our own empathy in the process? The 3rd painting is the one that sparked the most emotion from myself. The blur of the health system in South Africa requires a lot from the professional but are Medical Professionals a blackhole of empathy. Seeking Serenity explores the point of view that Medical Professionals experience on a daily basis when treating patients and how often we give a lot of empathy but at the end of the day we are drained and exhausted, yet we recover to do it all again the following day. I often feel that some patients lose the amount of empathy they receive, as it becomes difficult to treat them effectively if one is overcome with empathy towards them.
Reflecting on my Clinical experience, I often struggle to provide an equal amount of Empathy towards all my patients on a daily basis as some of the patients require a lot more or less empathy to provide an effective treatment. While being empathetic towards them, it is often difficult to maintain within the treatment time frame as I struggle to remain focused when some cases are highly emotional and psychological support is required to provide a holistic approach to the patient. A patient that had suffered bilateral lower limb burns and burns to the forearm really caused me to question my empathy. Treatment of a burn patient is not an easy task due to the fact that it is highly painful and often the session intensifies the pain. I was well aware that I am causing him tremendous amounts of pain and as he asked to me to stop, I looked away from his pleading eyes since we both were aware that completing the movement was the best outcome. Following the treatment session, I felt like I was in the 2nd painting. Lost in my belief that I provoked so much pain towards an individual yet I was aware that the pain would be beneficial towards the patient as well as knowing that if I did not cause the pain, the long-term issue will be greater. The end of the day, when I got home and reflected on the day. I found myself in tears as I was struggling to forget the pleading eyes of my patient and how I felt that I could have been more empathetic towards him. The following day, I dreaded seeing the patient as his eyes were still haunting me. Walking towards his room, I felt a darkness of exhaustion around me that made me question my ability as I knew that I was going to install pain and the eyes would meet mine again and I would have to say “I know that this is painful and this experience is not a pleasant one but we are going to work together to get you through the situation”. The end of each day when I reflect on the day, I found myself extremely fatigued even though the day was not filled with a physical or mental challenge. The fatigue I was feeling was the emphatic fatigue due to the type of treatments, I was giving towards my patients. Treating as a Physiotherapist does not only require a physical component but also a mental one towards the patient.
I have learnt through my experience that being emphatical towards one patient is capable, but multiple patients with multiple stories and faces is difficult. The sessions tire my empathy to an extent where I feel that I’m only dropping a bright speck into the blackhole of the health system we are involved in.
References:
Cocker, F., & Joss, N. (2016). Compassion Fatigue among Healthcare, Emergency and Community Service Workers: A Systematic Review. International Journal Of Environmental Research And Public Health, 13(6), 618. doi: 10.3390/ijerph13060618
Lee, Y. (2019). Seeking Serenity
Oxford. Empathy. Retrieved 26 August 2019, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empathy
Steenkamp, H., Warren, G., Kruger, P., Boghosi, G., & Semple, F. (2003). Statistical results of an analysis of the Phyiotherapy department in the Johannesburg Hospital.
University of the Western Cape, Department of Physiotherapy. (2019). Guidelines to Clinical Practice
3 thoughts on “The Empathetic blackhole of the health System”
I thoroughly enjoyed reading your post. I liked the way you linked our artwork to the content. There are a few grammatical errors and spelling errors : eg. ” I often struggle to provide an equal amount” , just insert “empathy” in there. Just re-read your piece and you will be able to correct the necessary errors.
I think perhaps instead of starting your piece with the definition of empathy, I suggest a more intriguing introductory sentence as the piece itself is really well written however you want to keep the reader’s attention from start to finish. Additionally, perhaps a statement or question to conclude that leaves the reader with a provoked thought? I liked the light in the blackhole so definitely do not change that. Maybe just a a question or statement after to leave the reader with a thought to ponder …
I have not yet treated a burns patient so I felt quite enlightened by you sharing your story as it made me more aware of the emotional turmoil that I will feel. My favourite part of this piece was your clinical experience story. I felt that I could relate to the emotions that you go through when seeing a patient and how your daily experiences affect you once we get home after a day of work.
Lastly, do not shy away from emotions. We all as health practitioners are here to support one another.
Well done on a great piece!
Hi Cayley, Thank you for sharing your clinical experience with me. Reading about your experience made me think about one of my own patients. He was developing muscle contractures in his hips and his knees, and it was my job to stretch him out, so that he could regain his full ROM. But the process in doing this was extremely painful for the patient, he would look at me with dread in his eyes and ask me not to do it. So I can relate to how you were feeling and your experience. With regards to your piece, I like the way you incorporated the artwork and how it fits into the context of our health profession. But also the initial reason of why it was created, mental health awareness, as our mental health can be affected in clinical practice, considering what we see and have to deal with on a daily basis. There were grammatical errors as well as spelling errors throughout your piece. If you re-read it I’m sure you will be able to pick it up and correct it. The last sentence of your second paragraph ” I often feel that some patients lose their empathy they receive, as if not it is very difficult to treat them effectively.” I was unsure about what you were trying to say here, maybe rephrase the sentence? You mention emphatic fatigue, so I’d like to know during the course of treating this patient, and other patients did you ever experience emphatic fatigue? Maybe you could write a few lines on how/if your empathy was affected by the end of the treatment of this patient? Otherwise, a good piece that I enjoyed reading.
Your title is really intriguing and it goes well with the art piece that you have chosen to portray your clinical experience. I really enjoyed reading your piece, it is well structured and I could relate to how you felt in that particular situation as I had a similar case with one of my patients before. Your reflection gives a clear representation of how the pictures you have chosen relate to your feelings and empathy towards your patient.
I really enjoyed reading this piece. Good work!