The cultivation of compassionate patient care is threaded throughout training at the University of Arizona College of Medicine. It begins as we interview and build an incoming class. And while we absolutely focus on the science of medicine and appropriate questions and exams to perform, in Doctoring, for example, students are also taught the mnemonic “NEURS”-to remember to explore emotions and support the patient’s social and psychological aspects of illness.
Another example is our five Certificates of Distinctions which students can take to further expand their knowledge and skills. The Certificate of Distinction in Health Humanities has multiple disciplines including bioethics, narrative medicine and the arts. By using the power of stories and self-reflection, we can expand our insights into the humanistic aspects of illness. The adage is true that “medicine is an art and science”. And the artistic side of healthcare is so important. Through art in its many forms, we can develop a deeper appreciation and lens to really see the whole patient. And through the Service and Community Health Certificate of Distinction, students volunteer their time to care for underserved patients in our community and in doing so, gain an understanding of the many determinants of health that affect their patients’ quality-of life, risks and outcomes. When we understand the barriers our patients experience, this increases our compassion towards them. I think of compassion like a muscle, we need to spend time reinforcing and building our compassion on a regular basis because when we are stressed or fatigued, it’s very easy to rush through an encounter and forget the “care” in healthcare. Research shows that compassionate care makes a difference not only in patient outcomes, but also in the financial health of our organizations and well-being of our students, residents, faculty and staff1.
And finally, I want to mention the focus we place on caring for our self in order to care for others. We have a dedicated wellness team with psychologists. The depth of our wellness team is not something you see in most medical schools. Whether it’s individualized support, or structured debrief sessions during the third year clerkships, we want to support our students and residents, so they are supportive and humanistic physicians.
Dr. Kaib completed her residency at Phoenix Baptist Hospital and earned her medical degree from The University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson. She graduated cum laude from Arizona State University, Tempe, with a Bachelor of Science in chemistry. Dr. Kaib is a member of the American Academy of Family Physicians and the advisor for the UA COM-P branch of the American Medical Women’s Association. She previously had a private practice in Phoenix.