title: The significance of empathy in current hospital based practice.
abstract: This paper examines empathy as a practice component that is particularly significant in its relationship to self-determination in the discharge process in acute hospital settings. Empathy is also emphasized as an essential ingredient to a psychosocial assessment that leads to accurate problem formulation and preciseness in planning. Current theories on empathy are discussed in a literature review, while pertinent practice issues are presented in several case vignettes. Theory and practice confirm that empathic skills can develop on both sentient and cognitive levels over time. This development is enhanced by supervision that utilizes the worker's capacity for self-awareness.
authors.affiliation: Department of Social Work Services, Mount Sinai Medical Center, New York, NY 10029.
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Bennett
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Legon
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Zilberfein
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D004645:Empathy; D005260:Female; D006748:Hospital Departments; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010344:Patient Advocacy; D010351:Patient Discharge; D010358:Patient Participation; D011369:Professional-Patient Relations; D012648:Self Care; D012948:Social Work Department, Hospital