Empathy

Simply stated, empathy is being able to understand and share the feelings of others. It is an important attribute of healthcare providers, and is a key component in providing care to our patients. Our patients must be engaged with empathy, to foster improved patients’ communication and satisfaction. Additionally, engaging empathy also supports positive patients’ health outcomes. Being empathetic, shows caring, compassion, and understanding of the patient’s perspective. It allows us to make connections, which help to increase our awareness in assessing the needs of our patients, and aid in formulating appropriate patient-centered care.

Facilitating empathy enables us to recognize and acknowledge others’ fear, ambivalence, pain, and worry. An empathic approach can be a simple touch, making eye contact, or giving a gentle hug. Sometimes, empathy takes us to the level of immense vulnerability, resulting in many different emotions. We should permit ourselves to be vulnerable.

Sometimes experiences cause us to be detached from our emotions and not exhibit empathy. When we acknowledge the lack of empathy, we may need to ‘examine our biases, and walk in others ‘shoes. It is imperative that we champion a culture of empathy, which helps us to be better listeners, build trust, and develop stronger relationships.

Stay FAB: Fearless, Affectionate and Bold

Self-Care

Creating a work- life balance, is an important aspect of effective self-care, however for most individuals, achieving this goal is a constant challenge. Life is demanding, and we are compelled to function effectively in our many roles, as an employee, spouse, caregiver, and parent. As we navigate through our many roles and responsibilities, we often neglect caring for ourselves.

Self-care should be a deliberate, continuous process to attend to our emotional, mental, spiritual and physical needs. Effective self-care should be proactive and not reactive. We should be constantly engaged in caring for ourselves, in both the professional and personal settings. There are various tools and strategies that can be utilized to achieve efficacious self-care such as: maintaining healthy relationships with families, friends, and coworkers; delegating, setting boundaries, and accessing available resources for assistance and support. Additionally, fostering positive work and home environment, practicing healthy eating habits, obtaining adequate sleep, exercising, and meditating also contribute to successful self-care.

Functioning at our fullest potential requires that we are mentally, emotionally, physically and spiritually healthy. It is imperative that we engage in mindfulness, and enhance our awareness of our total being. This practice will allow us to immediately recognize, and address any deviation from our norm. A personalized plan should be created, implemented, and incorporated into our daily routine. Remember that self-care should not be for a moment, it should be a lifestyle. We should utilize pertinent tools and strategies to empower ourselves to be our best. Today, begin the journey in embracing, achieving and maintaining the best “you”.

Stay FAB: Fearless, Affectionate, and Bold