RESUMO
Objectives: Empathy is a crucial attribute within the physician-patient relationship. This study aimed to evaluate the empathy levels of students in the College of Medicine at Hawler Medical University [HMU] in Erbil city, Iraq
Methods: This cross-sectional study took place between January and May 2015 and included all medical undergraduates enrolled at HMU [n = 989]. The validated self-administered English language version of the Jefferson Scale of Physician Empathy-Student Version [JSPE-SV] was used to measure empathy levels. Students reported their conformity to each statement of the 20-item questionnaire on a 7-point Likert scale. Levels of empathy were considered directly relative to their final score
Results: A total of 927 students completed the questionnaire [response rate: 93.7%]. The male-to-female ratio was 0.72:1 and the mean age was 21.3 +/- 1.4 years. The mean empathy score was 101.9 +/- 19.2. Female students had significantly higher empathy [P = 0.023] and more frequently chose people-oriented specialties [P = 0.001] than males. First-year students reported the highest mean score [112.9 +/- 20.1] while fourth-year students had the lowest [92.7 +/- 16.0]. There was a significant decline in mean scores between first- and second-year male students [P = 0.020] and first- and fourth-year male students [P = 0.050]. Students who chose people-oriented specialties had significantly higher scores than those who chose technologyoriented specialties [P = 0.002]
Conclusion: The studied cohort of HMU students demonstrated low empathy levels. As such, the inclusion of empathy instruction in medical school curricula is recommended to promote professionalism and patient welfare