9th Annual Conference

The Empathy Effect (EE) is a workshop informed by research showing that client outcomes are influenced by how clients feel they are treated by healthcare professionals. Created by the Institute for Healthcare Communication, the curriculum is broadly applicable to all healthcare & integrative health professionals, health care staff, & students. EE was developed with guidance from nationally renowned experts, dedicated leaders, & clinicians working in safety net organizations.

Trusting relationships between health professionals & patients is essential for optimal care. In healthcare, as in all human interactions, people hold ideas about others that may involve judgment, demonstrate stigma & reflect bias, which is harmful for all people, & more so for those most vulnerable. The curriculum focuses on people who suffer from conditions subject to stigma, marginalized & substandard care, such as people with mental health & addictive disorders, chronic pain, & trauma history.

This highly interactive workshop opens dialogue about the origins & impact of implicit & explicit bias that inhibit compassionate & equitable care, & introduces practical, evidence-based communication skills to heighten patients’ perception of empathy conveyance, improve health outcomes, & support team based-care & job satisfaction. EE also supports a practice of cognitive empathy emphasizing self-awareness & self-care strategies for health care professionals to prevent burnout that may result from witnessing suffering & trauma of clients. This workshop highlights empathy as a key technique for trauma-informed care.

EE is based on three premises: Empathy is healing & judgment is harmful; Vulnerable populations experience greater harm by judgment & lack of empathy; & We all have judgments. Through an experiential empathy conveyance model- the INGEAR model- participants learn skills to manage bias that support clients' & healthcare professionals' overall wellness.

Note: participant limit= 15-20

The presenter, DrPH, CCH, CHC regularly presents on a wide variety of topics within the public health, behavioral health, health care communication, and integrative medicine to interdisciplinary clinical staff, administration & leadership, and public agencies. Over her career, she has presented & facilitated in many formats to engage audience & clients, including small groups, interactive sessions, webinars, large conference settings, & graduate schools.

Empathy, Compassionate Care, Stigma Reduction, Equity, Equitable Care, Health Disparities, Trauma-Informed Care, Mental Health, Self-Care Strategies, Provider Burnout, Job Satisfaction, Provider Joy, Experiential, Skills Development

Skill-based training or Experiential workshop: provide an opportunity to acquire and practice a new skill and to observe and refine teaching techniques for this skill

This session is appropriate for all audiences and skill levels