Use of Enriched Case Studies to Enhance Empathy in Pharmacy Students
Associate Professor Gail Goodman-Snitkoff Ph.D.Director and Assistant Professor Louis S. Snitkoff M.D. and FACP
pages: 5 - 16
- DOI: 10.1300/J060v13n02_02
- Version of record first published: 26Mar2007
Abstract:
In the education of health care professionals, the way we communicate about patients undoubtedly influences the way our students think about patients. One goal of pharmacy education is to develop competent and empathetic clinicians. Recommendations have been made about how to maintain or increase empathy throughout the educational experience, but little attention has been paid to the tools we use to teach students about patients. The case study is one such tool. In this article, we compare a traditional case study with an enriched case study for the information that is conveyed about the patient. The additional information presented in an enriched case study gives the student a more complete view of the patient as well as the clinician-patient relationship, and provides a basis for the development of empathy by the reader.