Physiciansʼ Empathy and Clinical Outcomes for Diabetic Patients

PURPOSE: To test the hypothesis that physicians' empathy is associated with positive clinical outcomes for diabetic patients. METHOD: A correlational study design was used in a university-affiliated outpatient setting. Participants were 891 diabetic patients, treated between July 2006 and June 2009, by 29 family physicians. Results of the most recent hemoglobin A1c and LDL-C tests were extracted from the patients' electronic records. The results of hemoglobin A1c tests were categorized into good control (9.0%). Similarly, the results of the LDL-C tests were grouped into good control (130). The physicians, who completed the Jefferson Scale of Empathy in 2009, were grouped into high, moderate, and low empathy…