COMMUNICATION AND COMPASSION SKILLS AMONG PORTUGUESE RADIOGRAPHERS
Synopsis
Over the last decade, literature has highlighted the importance of communication and compassion skills in professional-patient relations. In the context of Radiology, Radiotherapy and Nuclear Medicine, these skills are essential for more humanised approach, lower levels of burnout, and more effective results. Objectives: To explore the communication and compassion skills of Radiographers their association with sociodemographic and professional variables. Methodology: Observational, analytical,
and cross-sectional study. Instruments: Sociodemographic and Work Questionnaire; Health Professionals Communication Skills Scale, and Compassion Scale. Participants: 51 (80.4% females) mean age 36.18 (SD=10.805). Results: Most of the participants were Radiographers (58.8%), followed by Therapeutic Radiographers (25.5%) and Nuclear Medicine Radiographers (15.7%). Average scores for Communication skills were: Empathy=4.90, Respect=5.37, Social Competence=4.42, and Informative Communication=5.01, total Compassion score=97.59. Younger professionals showed higher levels of espect (p=0.049), Therapeutic Radiographers had higher Empathy (p=0.028), and professionals with Communication Skills showed higher Respect (p=0.016). Communication and compassion were significant associated. Conclusions: These findings provide exploratory insight into communication and compassion skills in Radiographers. Given the small sample size, results should be interpreted with caution, and should not be generalized. It should be noted that further studies with larger samples are needed, given the importance of this topic for the humanization of healthcare.
