Conversations about soft or character skills have gained traction in recent years, indicating a growing recognition of their importance across different industries. Healthcare is no exception to this trend. As organizations strive to address how to improve the patient experience, character skills are frequently neglected in favor of developing technical skills and competencies.
It is important to recognize that while healthcare professionals need strong technical abilities, the importance of character skills should not be overlooked. Character skills, particularly empathy, have been shown to have extensive benefits in healthcare. Research shows that these skills not only enhance patient-clinician relationships but also help clinicians build trust with patients, promote greater patient engagement, and increase the likelihood of treatment adherence.
Given the far-reaching benefits of character skills in the delivery of care, it’s essential to further explore its potential. In this blog, we will share three compelling reasons why character skills, through curiosity-driven empathy, can revolutionize patient care and transform the experience for both patients and healthcare professionals. Let’s dive right in!
Fostering Deeper Patient Connections
During one of the episodes of our podcast, This Clinical Life, we had the privilege of speaking with Dr. Stephen Trzeciak, physician-scientist, professor, and best-selling author of Compassionomics and Wonder Drug. In that episode, Dr. Trzeciak discussed a study from Johns Hopkins University, which found that it takes only 40 seconds to demonstrate compassion effectively. This finding aligns perfectly with the concept of curiosity-driven empathy and its role in healthcare.
Curiosity-driven empathy encourages healthcare professionals to ask better questions, listen attentively, and seek to understand the patient’s perspective. This approach goes beyond typical symptom-checking questions, aiming to comprehend the emotional, social, and psychological experiences of patients. When providers express genuine interest in understanding what matters most to the patient, it builds trust and creates a safe environment for the patient to engage in their care, fostering a deeper connection that lowers anxiety and promotes a sense of collaboration and partnership in their treatment.
Enhancing Personalized Care and Better Outcomes
Empathy driven by curiosity often results in better patient-clinician relationships and is also an integral part of delivering personalized care. Much of our knowledge on how to improve the patient experience stems from focusing on what we need to deliver rather than why we need to deliver it. Shifting our focus to understand the why behind patient needs and preferences will allow us to tailor our care more effectively.
For example, if the healthcare professional knows that the patient cannot alter their diet as recommended due to cultural food practices, they will make recommendations that respect the patient’s food culture. This high level of customization only becomes possible when providers are willing to learn about a patient’s life beyond just the clinical particulars. Such an approach is more likely to make patients adhere to their care plans and, therefore, lead to better health outcomes and a far more satisfactory patient experience.
Creating a Culture of Continuous Improvement
The more common challenge facing healthcare teams is how to improve the patient experience at an organizational level, not just an individual one. Curiosity-driven empathy could be a catalyst for creating a culture of continuous improvement. Healthcare professionals regularly pose questions such as “How can we make this better for our patients?” or “What are we missing in understanding our patients’ needs?” leading to insights and innovations beyond routine care.
Building curiosity into practice creates an environment where team members self-initiate in the pursuit of better ways to advance patient care. For instance, routine discussions about feedback received from patients, setbacks in the delivery of care, or innovative ideas addressing common issues facing patients might improve processes and protocols. This kind of thinking—always inquisitive and empathetic—pushes organizations to change, evolve, and continually raise their standard of care.
Curiosity-driven empathy also spills over into the treatment of colleagues. When the same curiosity-driven understanding is utilized to comprehend the perspectives and challenges of peers, it fosters collaborative and strong teamwork–ensuring that everyone is working in the best interest of patient care.
How to Improve the Patient Experience? Start With Curiosity-Driven Empathy
it is equally essential to cultivate a deep and genuine interest in the individuals behind the symptoms. This approach can reveal valuable insights into how the patient experience can be enhanced in today’s fast-paced world. While quite basic, curiosity-driven empathy is a powerful way to bring much-needed change in how care is delivered–revolutionizing patient care by deepening patient connections, personalizing care, and shaping a culture of continuous improvement.
Healthcare professionals who embrace curiosity-driven empathy find that it not only improves patient outcomes but also enriches their own experience and satisfaction in their roles. By making curiosity and empathy central to patient interactions, the focus shifts from simply treating conditions to truly caring for people—creating a healthcare environment where every patient feels understood, valued, and involved in their care.
Andro is a marketer and social media manager for Practicing Excellence. He has a knack for turning confusing topics into easily-digestible content.
