A Module on Death and Dying to Develop Empathy in Student Pharmacists

Authors

Michael L. Manolakis
Jacqueline L. Olin
Phillip L. Thornton, Cedarville UniversityFollow
Christian R. Dolder
Conor Hanrahan

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

4-2011

Journal Title

American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education

Volume

75

Issue

4

First Page

1

Last Page

7

Abstract

Objective. To implement an integrated module on death and dying into a 15-week bioethics course and determine whether it increased student pharmacists' empathy. Design. Students participated in a 5-week death and dying module that included presentation of the film Wit, an interactive lecture on hospice, and a lecture on the ethics of pain management. Assessment. Fifty-six students completed the 30-item Balanced Emotional Empathy Scale (BEES) before and after completing the module and wrote a reflective essay. Students demonstrated an appreciation of patient-specific values in their essay. Quantitative data collected via BEES scores demonstrated significant improvement in measured empathy. Conclusion. A 5-week instructional model on death and dying significantly increased student empathy.

Keywords

death, dying, empathy, end-of-life care

Recommended Citation

Manolakis, M. L., Olin, J. L., Thornton, P. L. , Dolder, C. R. , & Hanrahan, C. (2011). A module on death and dying to develop empathy in student pharmacists. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 75 (4), Article 71.