Don't think of kindness in medicine as optional

Don’t forget to be kind—it can go a long way in delivering better care.That’s the assertion made by U.K. pediatrician Dr. Bob Klaber at the International Conference on Residency Education (ICRE) in Ottawa this October.An internationally recognized leader in kindness in medicine, Dr. Klaber delivered the closing plenary on how kindness should be thought of as an urgent, evidence-based core component of high-quality healthcare rather than a “soft” optional skill.“This is a talk about kindness, and it's framed in this conference theme around uncertainty. But I think fundamentally, it's also about hope, and it's really about the delivery of high-quality outcomes,” he said.Dr. Klaber cited a paper published by the Carnegie UK Trust that frames a distinction between the “rational lexicon,” which is a framework driven by metrics, data and accountability, and the “relational lexicon,” which looks at human connection, empathy and trust. Currently, Dr. Klaber argues that most healthcare systems around the world operate at a 95:5 ratio in favour of the rational, when in fact, a 50:50 balance is needed.“Unless we marry that [rational care] up with a balance of a focus on the relational . . . a focus on listening, on storytelling, a focus on well-being . . . then we miss out on the outcomes that are around relationships and around trust,” he said.In addition, Dr. Klaber brought up the book Intelligent Kindness, which argues that kindness fosters kinship and attentiveness, which in turn, builds trust in the patient-physician relationship and directly yields better clinical outcomes.How can physicians apply kindness in their practice?In 2017, researcher Len Berry and his colleagues published a paper on the role of kindness in cancer care, finding that acts of kindness improved clinical outcomes for patients. Berry and his colleagues identified six key types of kindness:Deep listening: Giving undivided attention to a patient rather than multitasking.Empathy: Tuning into the patient’s feelings.Discretionary effort: The small acts of kindness that signal genuine care.Timeliness: Eliminating unnecessary waiting anxiety, such as making a brief 30-second phone call on a Friday afternoon to confirm normal results and make sure the patient doesn’t have to wait an entire weekend worrying.Honesty: Offering transparent and candid communication.Families: Making it easier for patients to have family members visit, whenever possible and actively involving them in care decisions.“I think that our single most important leadership challenge is to reconnect healthcare with its mission and its purpose, and all of the evidence point to that if you do that, the measures of staff well-being, measures around burnout, measures around patient experience of care, measures around health equity all improve,” he said.During the Q&A session, Dr. Klaber drew a distinction between kindness and simply “being nice.” Superficial niceness can lead to conflict-avoidant behaviour, whereas true kindness involves offering clear and candid feedback that address problems directly.Another attendee asked what interventions individuals can start to implement. Dr. Klaber suggested small actions, such as deep listening, sending thank-you notes and treating kindness as a core professional standard.“Try holding the door and see what happens,” he said. “I’d really start small.”

Don't think of kindness in medicine as optional

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