John Cox

Empathy, identity and engagement in person‐centred medicine: the sociocultural context

AIMS This paper considers in outline the complexity of the empathic process from subjective, philosophical and psychological perspectives, and suggests that compassionate empathy is a core requirement of a person-centred approach to health care delivery. Empathy is facilitated by secure attachments in infancy (intersubjectivity) and a subsequent firm sense of self and personal identity. Empathic understanding is enhanced by the medical humanities, but the neglect of musical appreciation in this regard is surprising. CONCLUSIONS The biopsychosocial model is reviewed, and a body-mind-spirit paradigm is proposed as a more optimal framework for health care delivery in a multicultural society.Aims  This paper considers in outline the complexity of the empathic process from subjective, philosophical and psychological perspectives, and suggests that compassionate empathy is a core requirement of a person-centred approach to health care delivery. Empathy is facilitated by secure attachments in infancy (intersubjectivity) and a subsequent firm sense of self and personal identity. Empathic understanding is enhanced by the medical humanities, but the neglect of musical appreciation in this regard is surprising. Conclusions  The biopsychosocial model is reviewed, and a body-mind-spirit paradigm is proposed as a more optimal framework for health care delivery in a multicultural society.

Towards an evidence‐based ‘Medicine of the Person’: the contribution of psychiatry to health care provision

The purpose of this essay is to outline how the conceptual and clinical approaches of psychiatry contribute to increased understanding about the nature of evidence, and the art and science of medicine. It is based on the authors search for a more integrative medicine, the influence of Paul Tourniers ‘Medicine de la Personne’ and the Institutional Programme on Psychiatry for the Person led by the World Psychiatric Association. Evidence to support this approach from palliative care and general practice is cited, but new educational and research initiatives from other international organizations, such as the World Medical Association, the World Federation for Medical Education and the World Association of Family Practice and the medical Royal Colleges, are proposed.