IDENTIFYING FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO REDUCED EMPATHY AND EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION AMONG NURSES: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

Abstract

Background: The fundamental cornerstones of high-quality patient-centered nursing care consist of empathy alongside sensitization and effective communication. This systematic literature review seeks to discover both the major elements leading to the diminishing empathy and sensitization and communication skills in nursing practice. Methods: A search investigation following PRISMA guidelines covered PubMed alongside Embase and CINAHL as well as Scopus to identify articles from the preceding six years. Results: Multiple factors exist which influence this decrease based on the research findings. The individual factors which contribute to decline include burnout together with compassion fatigue along with emotional exhaustion and insufficient self-care habits. Empathetic engagement declines because of organizational. The insufficient teaching of emotional intelligence together with communication skills and resilience skills within nursing education worsens current nursing challenges. The review applies the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model to show how  excessive demands combined with insufficient resources lead to emotional exhaustion along with communication problems. Conclusion: Coordinated interventions need to address the decline in nursing empathy and communication at all three levels of individual staff members and their organizations and educational training programs. A comprehensive approach must be enacted to maintain patient- centered care values while improving both practicing conditions for nurses and quality results for individuals they serve.