Short- and long-term subjective medical treatment outcome of trauma surgery patients: the importance of physician empathy.

PURPOSE: To investigate accident casualties' long-term subjective evaluation of treatment outcome 6 weeks and 12 months after discharge and its relation to the experienced surgeon's empathy during hospital treatment after trauma in consideration of patient-, injury-, and health-related factors. The long-term results are compared to the 6-week follow-up outcomes. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Two hundred and seventeen surgery patients were surveyed at 6 weeks, and 206 patients at 12 months after discharge from the trauma surgical general ward. The subjective evaluation of medical treatment outcome was measured 6 weeks and 12 months after discharge with the respective scale from the Cologne Patient Questionnaire. Physician Empathy was assessed with the Consultation and Relational Empathy Measure. The correlation between physician empathy and control variables with the subjective evaluation of medical treatment outcome 12 months after discharge was identified by means of logistic regression analysis under control of sociodemographic and injury-related factors. RESULTS: One hundred and thirty-six patients were included within the logistic regression analysis at the 12-month follow-up. Compared to the 6-week follow-up, the level of subjective evaluation of medical treatment outcome was slightly lower and the association with physician empathy was weaker. Compared to patients who rated the empathy of their surgeon lower than 31 points, patients with ratings of 41 points or higher had a 4.2-fold higher probability to be in the group with a better medical treatment outcome (3.5 and above) on the Cologne Patient Questionnaire scale 12 months after discharge from hospital (P=0.009, R (2)=33.5, 95% confidence interval: 1.440-12.629). CONCLUSION: Physician empathy is the strongest predictor for a higher level of trauma patients' subjective evaluation of treatment outcome 6 weeks and 12 months after discharge from the hospital. Interpersonal factors between surgeons and their patients are possible key levers for improving patient outcomes in an advanced health system. Communication trainings for surgeons might prepare them to react appropriately to their patients' needs and lead to satisfactory outcomes for both parties.

Physician empathy and subjective evaluation of medical treatment outcome in trauma surgery patients.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze whether patients' perception of their medical treatment outcome is higher among patients who experienced a higher empathy by trauma surgeons during their stay in hospital. METHODS: 127 patients were surveyed six weeks after discharge from the trauma surgical general ward. Subjective evaluation of medical treatment outcome was measured with the corresponding scale from the Cologne Patient Questionnaire. Clinical empathy was assessed by using the CARE measure. The influence of physician empathy and control variables on a dichotomized index of subjective evaluation of medical treatment outcome was identified with a logistic regression. RESULTS: 120 patients were included in the logistic regression analysis. Compared to patients with physician empathy ratings of less than 30 points, patients with ratings of 41 points or higher have a 20-fold higher probability to be in the group with a better medical treatment outcome on the CPQ-scale (α-level<.001, R(2) 46.9). CONCLUSION: Findings emphasize the importance of a well-functioning relationship between physician and patient even in a surgical setting where the focus is mostly on the bare medical treatment. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Communication trainings i.e. in surgical education can be an effective way to improve the ability to show empathy with patients' concerns.

Communication, social capital and workplace health management as determinants of the innovative climate in German banks.

OBJECTIVE: The present study aims to measure the determinants of the innovative climate in German banks with a focus on workplace health management (WHM). METHODS: We analyze the determinants of innovative climate with multiple regressions using a dataset based on standardized telephone interviews conducted with health promotion experts from 198 randomly selected German banks. RESULTS: The regression analysis provided a good explanation of the variance in the dependent variable (R² = 55%). Communication climate (ß = 0.55; p < 0.001), social capital (ß = 0.21; p < 0.01), the establishment of a WHM program (ß = 0.13; p < 0.05) as well as company size (ß = 0.15; p < 0.01) were found to have a significant impact on an organization's innovative climate. CONCLUSIONS: In order to foster an innovation-friendly climate, organizations should establish shared values. An active step in this direction involves strengthening the organizations' social capital and communication climate through trustworthy management decisions such as the implementation of a WHM program.