This document discusses the author's experience learning empathy during her dietetic internship. While she felt confident in her nutritional knowledge from undergrad, she questioned whether she had the ability to share and understand another person's feelings. During a difficult visit with a palliative care patient's family, she had to dig deep and put herself in their place to communicate empathically. This experience helped mold her into the dietitian she wants to be by teaching her to provide information to patients in an empathetic way. The author concludes that while empathy cannot be taught in a classroom, it can be learned through life's lessons, and is a necessary component of her practice as a dietitian.

1. MARY COCHRAN
3/8/16
WHAT I DIDN’T LEARN IN UNDERGRAD~ EMPATHY
As I entered my dietetic internship, I felt confident about the
nutritional information that I needed to give to clients, but did I
have empathy? Did I have the ability to share another person’s
feelings? Which begs the question do we learn empathy in
undergrad?
Empathy is one of my five top strengths, but having the
communication skills necessary to talk with a family whose loved
one is dying made me have to dig deep from within my core.
Everyone has their own opinion about their loved one and what is the best care they should
receive. As I walked down the hallway to the patient’s room I had an internal struggle of what I
would say to the family. What would they say to me? Would I want to talk with someone about
food when my loved one was struggling for every breath taken? Was it okay for me to be in this
very private, intimate place? My preceptor left me to figure out how to handle this situation, so
all I could do was face the music and enter the room. As I did, I put myself in their place.
As months have passed by, I realize that this situation has helped to mold me into the dietitian
that I want to become. Patient’s struggles are real. I have the knowledge to help them along
their journey, but I must pass my information on in an empathetic way giving them a nibble at a
time, if necessary to help them reach their goals. For some patient’s, like the palliative care
patient that I saw, they might not have a nutritional goal, but I might just need to be there to give
a kind word.
Empathy cannot be taught in a classroom setting. It can be learned in the class room of life,
though, but only if you are willing to learn its sometimes difficult lessons. I believe it is a
necessary component for my practice as a dietitian, whether clinical or community. Empathy- is
it part of your scope of practice?