The effect of surgeon empathy and emotional intelligence on patient satisfaction

• DOI: 10.1007/s10459-011-9278-3
• Publication Date: 2011-02-01T07:43:55Z
• Authors: Hui-Ching Weng; James F. Steed; Shang-Won Yu; Yi-Ten Liu; Chia-Chang Hsu; Tsan-Jung Yu; Wency Chen
• Keywords: Adult; Aged, 80 and over; Male; Physician-Patient Relations; Attitude of Health Personnel; Health Status; Age Factors; Middle Aged; 3. Good health; Interviews as Topic; 03 medical and health sciences; 0302 clinical medicine; Socioeconomic Factors; Patient Satisfaction; General Surgery; Physicians; Surveys and Questionnaires; Humans; Female; Empathy; Aged; Emotional Intelligence; Follow-Up Studies

We investigated the associations of surgeons' emotional intelligence and surgeons' empathy with patient-surgeon relationships, patient perceptions of their health, and patient satisfaction before and after surgical procedures. We used multi-source approaches to survey 50 surgeons and their 549 outpatients during initial and follow-up visits. Surgeons' emotional intelligence had a positive effect (r = .45; p < .001) on patient-rated patient-surgeon relationships. Patient-surgeon relationships had a positive impact on patient satisfaction before surgery (r = .95; p < .001). Surgeon empathy did not have an effect on patient-surgeon relationships or patient satisfaction prior to surgery. But after surgery, surgeon empathy appeared to have a significantly positive and indirect effect on patient satisfaction through the mediating effect of patients' self-reported health status (r = .21; p < .001). Our study showed that long-term patient satisfaction with their surgeons is affected less by emotional intelligence than by empathy. Furthermore, empathy indirectly affects patient satisfaction through its positive effect on health outcomes, which have a direct effect on patients' satisfaction with their surgeons.