Courtesy at times can come off as scripted actions built into our daily routines. However, there is a higher level of caring involving emotions. Lee (2004) defines this is as, “…clearly beyond normal courtesy. Let’s call it compassion” (p.58). Compassion involves going beyond normal courteous actions. At times it is the action of putting yourself into the patient’s shoes and feeling what they feel, sharing the experience together for a moment. According to Lee (2004), “this usually means doing or saying something that shows a genuine concern for the patient’s state of mind. It means exhibiting some heartfelt empathy for the patient’s anxiety and pain” (p.58).
One instance of compassion that I had the opportunity to demonstrate was as recent as today. A patient came in for her first PET/CT scan after being recently diagnosed with Endometrial Cancer. She explained in detail how she lost her father only one month ago due to cancer and was stressed out with the whole pandemic so she had to delay her scan post-surgery. As she began to explain all these things she broken down and started to cry. I gave her a tissue and put my hand on her shoulder. I said I understand how your feeling and it’s totally fine to feel how you feel. I told her we are only human and tomorrow is not guaranteed. She asked me to pray for her and so I did. After I did pray, the weight was lifted off of her shoulders and I could sense her lightheartedness shortly after.
Another instance of compassion that I was involved was helping a gentleman after his PET/CT scan try to locate his family member to pick him up. He could barely use the phone. My company doesn’t require us to really tend to the patient after the scan is done and they are in the lobby but I could sense his anxiousness and took a moment to call his daughter and locate her in the parking lot to come for her Father. She was so glad I called because she could not reach the office (after multiple attempts) and couldn’t really walk in because of the social distancing rules. He was very grateful and told me how anxious he was to be back with his family.
Lee, F. (2004). If Disney Ran Your Hospital: 9 1/2 Things You Would Do Differently. Bozeman, MT: Second River Healthcare.
Note: With this experience I learned that compassion is a small gesture with a big effect. My actions of compassion have changed the way I view patients on a daily basis, understanding that every one of them has a different situation and may be coming in at a vulnerable time. They say to give your best "first impression" when meeting someone new, but these patients have already had many impressions of healthcare workers (good and bad). It is my role to make their experience a memorable, positive one so they will keep coming in for their exams.