An Introduction to Compassion in Healthcare Practice

Explore the concept of compassion as it applies to the field of healthcare and improving patient outcomes An Introduction to Compassion in Healthcare Practice identifies the core components of being compassionate and self-compassionate, so that we may be in a better position to attend to our health and to engage in helping others. The foundation of this book is that if we have an intention to help, we are best served by understanding what ‘helping’ really means. This is addressed by reviewing compassion in a range of contexts and environments, including through an evolutionary science perspective. In this view, we are ‘programmed’ to be compassionate—but social forces may throw challenges or obstacles in our way. Also covered in this text are the challenges associated with being compassionate to the self, as well as care encounters with individuals in a clinical context and working in a clinical team. Some of the ideas explored in An Introduction to Compassion in Healthcare Practice