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Empathy and ethical values in medicine: a quantitative study

Abstract

In health care, empathy is associated to several benefits; however, many studies have shown a decrease in empathy during medical education, which negatively impacts the humanization of care. This cross-sectional study analyzes the relation between sociodemographic factors and physicians’ level of empathy, as well as medical ethical values. A total of 143 Brazilian physicians answered empathy and hospitality scales. Results point to a relation between empathy and hospitality, as well as that factors such as gender, specialty and history of suffering influence care humanization.

Humanization of assistance; Empathy; User embracement; Bioethics; Medicine

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