ArticleThe British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners2016
Managing barriers to empathy in the clinical encounter: a qualitative interview study with GPs.
Article in The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 19 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
19 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 49 citations in OpenAlex.
- Predictors of Physician Compassion, Empathy, and Related Constructs: a Systematic Review.Journal of general internal medicine · 2022Pooled it
- The perspectives of health professionals and patients on racism in healthcare: A qualitative systematic review.PloS one · 2021Pooled it
- "International journal of qualitative studies on health and well-being · 2025Article
- Complex mental health difficulties in primary care: a scoping review with thematic synthesis.BJGP open · 2025Article
- Establishing key components of a combined ayurvedic diet and yoga therapy program for weight management in women with polycystic ovary syndrome: a Delphi study.BMC complementary medicine and therapies · 2025Article
- Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway-Beliefs About Compassion Predict Care and Motivation to Help Among Healthcare Professionals.Journal of clinical nursing · 2025Observational
- Coordinated empathy in attending general practitioners: an interpretive phenomenological approach to constructing a conceptual model of empathy.BMC primary care · 2025Article
- Expectations and needs of people with illicit substance use disorders in general practice: a qualitative study in Belgium.BMC primary care · 2024Article
- Supporting recovery in persons with stress-related disorders: A reflective life world research study of health care professionals in primary health care in Sweden.International journal of qualitative studies on health and well-being · 2023Article
- Personal and professional influences on health visitors' family focused practice for maternal mental illness: a cross sectional study.BMC health services research · 2022Article
- Assessing health-related quality of life among patients with peripheral artery disease: A review of the literature and focus on patient-reported outcome measures.Vascular medicine (London, England) · 2021Review
- 'Motivational work': a qualitative study of preventive health dialogues in general practice.BMC family practice · 2020Article
- []"Sacred encounters" in primary care: What do they mean for family physicians?]Atencion primaria · 2020Article
- Negotiating bodily sensations between patients and GPs in the context of standardized cancer patient pathways - an observational study in primary care.BMC health services research · 2020Observational
- Guarding against dispassion for doctors in the NHS.Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine · 2018Article
- Using Patient Reported Outcomes Measures to Promote Integrated Care.International journal of integrated care · 2018Article
- Breaking bad news to antenatal patients with strategies to lessen the pain: a qualitative study.Reproductive health · 2018Article
- Suffering and hope: Helen Lester Memorial Lecture 2016.BJGP open · 2017Article
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Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundCurrent daily general practice has become increasingly technical and somatically oriented (where attention to patients' feelings is decreased) due to an increase in protocol-based guidelines. Priorities in GP-patient communication have shifted from a focus on listening and empathy to task-oriented communication.
aimTo explore what barriers GPs experience when applying empathy in daily practice, and how these barriers are managed. DESIGN AND
settingThirty Dutch GPs with sufficient heterogeneity in sex, age, type of practice, and rural or urban setting were interviewed.
methodThe consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research (COREQ) were applied. The verbatim transcripts were then analysed.
resultsAccording to participating GPs, the current emphasis on protocol-driven care can be a significant barrier to genuineness in communication. Other potential barriers mentioned were time pressures and constraints, and dealing with patients displaying 'unruly behaviour' or those with personality disorders. GPs indicated that it can be difficult to balance emotional involvement and professional distance. Longer consulting times, smaller practice populations, and efficient practice organisation were described as practical solutions. In order to focus on a patient-as-person approach, GPs strongly suggested that deviating from guidelines should be possible when necessary as an element of good-quality care. Joining intercollegiate counselling groups was also discussed.
conclusionIn addition to practical solutions for barriers to behaving empathically, GPs indicated that they needed more freedom to balance working with protocols and guidelines, as well as a patient-as-person and patient-as-partner approach. This balance is necessary to remain connected with patients and to deliver care that is truly personal.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.