There is inconsistency in the effect of empathy training for healthcare professionals and students.

Commentary on: Bas-Sarmiento, P. Fernandez-Gutierrez, M. Baena-Banos. Correro-Bermejo, A. Soler-Martins, P.S. Torre-Moyano, SD.L. Empathy training in health sciences: A systematic review. Nurse Education in Practice 2020: 44. 1–13. The concept of empathy dates back to the 1880s, with the German psychologist Theodore Lipps recognising empathy as the emotional appreciation of another’s feelings.1 It is widely acknowledged that empathy plays a vital role in health sciences, eliciting an effective way for healthcare professionals to understand the experiences of patients without experiencing that state themselves.2 Nurses may develop their empathic skills through lived or shared experiences (experiential learning) or arts methods of humanist learning, such as narratives, poems or role play.3 The examination of empathy interventions …