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Although clinical experience develops many skills, physicians benefit from external input for improving communication skills.^1,2 Physicians can use the following techniques and training resources to improve their communication with patients and demonstrate empathy.

“People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” (Maya Angelou)

Defining empathy can be complicated. In medicine, it is thought of as a communication competence, but it also describes the experience between physician and patient, during which the physician becomes attuned to the patient to understand what the patient is feeling. Patients also use empathy to describe a physician’s ability to understand their feelings and opinions and express compassion and concern for their well-being.¹ Although physician empathy may seem to be a low priority in comparison to technical acumen, research indicates that physician empathy has wide-ranging benefits for both physicians and patients.

Although physician empathy may seem to be a low priority in comparison to clinical skill, research indicates that physician empathy has wide-ranging effects for both physicians and patients, including better patient outcomes, greater patient satisfaction, less stress and burnout, and — as the following case studies show — it can affect whether a patient files a medical liability lawsuit.

In this interaction, the involved physicians avoided disclosing important information to the patient during the informed consent process. An informed consent exchange that is not truthful and complete violates standards of medical ethics.

Terminating a physician-patient relationship is appropriate and ethical in a variety of circumstances. However, if the relationship is not ended appropriately, a physician could be liable for patient abandonment or for failure to diagnose or treat a condition. In this special report, NORCAL’s risk management experts present justifiable grounds for terminating a patient relationship and factors that may increase the risk of an abandonment claim.