A Practical Guide for Improving and Evaluating the Components of Emotional Intelligence in Healthcare Students

Emotional intelligence (EI) is essential for healthcare professionals as it can improve their overall performance at multiple levels. However, healthcare professionals do not adequately improve their EI during their university education. Therefore, in this perspective article, we present a practical guide for teaching and evaluating the components of EI in healthcare students, and the most common challenges/barriers for implementing EI to healthcare education curricula. The guide includes teaching methods and at least one validated questionnaire to improve and evaluate each of the five components of EI as described by Goleman: self-awareness, self-motivation, self-regulation, empathy, and social skill. In conclusion, this guide could help healthcare educators enhance the EI of their students.