The DOI matches its Crossref record; 39 of the 39 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Compassion in Health Care: An Empirical Model
Open accessAbstract
CONTEXT: Compassion is frequently referenced as a hallmark of quality care by patients, health care providers, health care administrators, and policy makers. Despite its putative centrality, including its institution in recent health care reform, an empirical understanding based on the perspectives of patients, the recipients of compassion, is lacking-making compassion one of the most referenced yet poorly understood elements of quality care. OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to investigate palliative cancer patients' understanding and experiences of compassion to provide a critical perspective on the nature and importance of compassion. METHODS: This grounded theory study used semi-structured interviews to investigate how patients understand and experience compassion in clinical care. Using convenience and theoretical sampling, 53 advanced cancer inpatients were recruited over a seven-month period from a specialized palliative care unit and hospital-wide palliative care service within a Canadian urban setting. Data were analyzed by four members of the research team through the three stages of Straussian grounded theory. RESULTS: Qualitative analysis yielded seven categories, each containing distinct themes and subthemes. Together, they constitute components of the compassion model-the first empirically based clinical model of compassion. The model defines compassion as a virtuous response that seeks to address the suffering and needs of a person through relational understanding and action. CONCLUSION: The components of the compassion model provide insight into how patients understand and experience compassion, providing the necessary empirical foundation to develop future research, measures, training, and clinical care based on this vital feature of quality care.
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“The authors note however that, compassion qualities can be cultivated or eroded over time, with practice setting being one of the most powerful modifiers.”
From Mindfulness and compassion-oriented practices at work reduce distress and enhance self-care of palliative care teams: a mixed-method evaluation of an "on the job" program. (2018) · cites this paper as [73]
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“Thus, although the roots of compassion seem to be innate, current evidence suggests that training, including meditation, can help to sustain compassion and nurture it over time.”
From Mindfulness and compassion-oriented practices at work reduce distress and enhance self-care of palliative care teams: a mixed-method evaluation of an "on the job" program. (2018) · cites this paper as [73]
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“They concluded that patient’s perceived compassion as being rooted in the virtues of their health care provider, generating the first evidence-based definition of compassion—a virtuous response that seeks to address the suffering and needs of a person through relational understanding and action.”
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“As a result, although the clinical relevance of compassion is inferred and is one of the most liberally referenced aspects of quality health care, an empirical understanding of compassion, including key qualities, facilitators, and inhibitors in a clinical setting, is lacking.(23,24,29)”
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“Therefore, it may be beneficial to evaluate students’ compassion aptitude at an early stage to determine teachability and to develop individualized learning plans to enhance these inherent qualities over time or at the very least buffer against the erosion of these qualities over the course of health care training.(36…”
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“Numerous studies have identified the central role of nonverbal communication in effective bedside clinical communication within health care delivery, including listening, presence, human relatedness, and creativity.(10,12,13,25,32,37,38) These often subtle, yet powerful elements of human communication have been found…”
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“An interview guide was developed (Table 2) based on a literature review and our research team’s previous experience conducting research with patients approaching end of life.(12,31,32)”
MethodSelf-citation
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Ge, A., Abou-Haiba, N., Ali, H., Holthe, J., Kim, M., Kangas, B., & Sawatsky, A. P. (2026) · Journal of General Internal Medicine · doi:10.1007/s11606-026-10476-6
“2 Such research is important because prior studies have demonstrated decreases in self-reported empathy and compassion as medical school progresses.”
Compassionate Care Experiences of Nurses in Acute Psychiatric Settings: A Qualitative Study
Sarıbudak, T. P., Üstün, B., & Kalyoncu, N. (2026) · Journal of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association · doi:10.1177/10783903261443984
The power of self-compassion in medical practice: A GP’s reflection
Raza, M. (2026) · InnovAiT Education and inspiration for general practice · doi:10.1177/17557380261441199
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“The literature suggests that patients may sometimes evaluate nursing care more positively than the objective quality of care would justify [40,41].”
Clinician experiences of organisational compassion in healthcare: a qualitative study
Pestian, T., Ellakula, J. C., Awtrey, E. C., Carle, A. C., Winick, N., Kanov, J. M., & Thienprayoon, R. (2026) · BMJ Open · doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2025-106948
“Feeling cared about has been identified as a core component of patient experiences of compassion 19 28 and our participants likewise experienced caring from their colleagues as the empathic component of compassion.”
InfluentialSinclair, S., MacInnis, C. C., Ordons, A. R. D., Dhingra, S., Harris, D., & Bouchal, S. R. (2026) · BMC Medical Education · doi:10.1186/s12909-026-09716-4
“The SCQ is a valid and reliable 15-item patient reported compassion measure [6, 25] that assesses patients experience of compassion from their healthcare team with items mapping onto each of the domains of compassion [1, 25].”
InfluentialSelf-citationMcLellan, A. S., & Mohammed, S. (2026) · The International Journal of Human Rights · doi:10.1080/13642987.2026.2691744
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Ayala, R. A., Castillo, D., & Pariseau‐Legault, P. (2026) · Nursing Inquiry · doi:10.1111/nin.70138
“Although definitions vary, contemporary scholarship broadly converges on compassion as a response to suffering that seeks to preserve dignity and alleviate distress (Chochinov 2007; Sinclair, McClement, et al. 2016; Pfaff and Markaki 2017; Sinclair et al. 2017; Malenfant et al. 2022).”
Slavova, V., & Georgieva, A. P. (2026) · BMJ Open · doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2026-118098
“16 In this sense, compassion goes beyond a spontaneous emotional reaction, constituting a morally considered choice and action, which, according to Von Dietze and Orb, positions compassionate care as a core dimension of the nurse’s professional identity.”
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What Hospitals Owe Beyond Justice: The Case for Love
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“Compassion faces a similar limit: it is usually reactive to perceived suffering and located in the clinical encounter (Sinclair et al. 2016, McCullough et al. 2022; Trzeciak and Mazzarelli 2019), even when some accounts give it institutional significance (Kerasidou et al. 2020).”
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Conceptualizations of compassion in the context of dementia caregiving: A scoping review protocol
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Engaging youth in end-of-life care: The 3 Wishes Project experience
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Metadata
- Authors
- Sinclair, S., McClement, S., Raffin-Bouchal, S., Hack, T. F., Hagen, N. A., McConnell, S., & Chochinov, H. M.
- Affiliations
- University of Calgary (CA)
- CancerCare Manitoba (CA)
- Corresponding author
- Sinclair, Shane
- Venue
- Journal of Pain and Symptom Management
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2016-02
- Volume
- 51
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 193-203
- ISSN
- 0885-3924 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W1912558312
- Cited by
- 328
- References
- 39
- Citations by year
- 2026: 42 · 2025: 39 · 2024: 39 · 2023: 21 · 2022: 39 · 2021: 36 · 2020: 41 · 2019: 27 · 2018: 21 · 2017: 13 · 2016: 10
- FWCI
- 11.89
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Journal of Pain and Symptom Management (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Libraries and Cultural Resources (University of Calgary) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Canadian Institutes of Health Research (125931)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Empathy and Medical Education
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Palliative and Oncologic Care
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Palliative Care and End-of-Life Issues
- Keywords
- compassion, palliative care, advanced cancer, patient experience, quality of care, patient suffering, relational understanding
- MeSH terms
- Canada, Empathy, Female, Humans, Inpatients, Interviews as Topic, Male, Middle Aged, Models, Theoretical, Neoplasms, Palliative Care, Urban Population, Qualitative Research
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