Empathy and Health
摘要
The relationship between healthcare, economics and empathy is complex and multidimensional. At the most perceptible level, it shapes interactions between patients, physicians and healthcare workers. However, these interactions are embedded in broader structural factors such as macroeconomic healthcare policies, health insurance regulations, the scope of public healthcare systems, availability of trained professionals and the economic conditions influencing the lifestyle of the population. Additionally, the business dynamics of pharmaceutical and allied industries which consequently affect the cost and accessibility of medicines, vaccines and equipment directly determine the quality of empathic patient care. However, an important distinction must be made between healthcare (medical care) and health itself, as Arrow (1963) had noted, health outcomes are driven by numerous factors, with medical care representing only one among many. This chapter explores these multiple dimensions of health and healthcare through the lenses of empathy and economics.