ABSTRACT
This chapter uses a case study to examine the application of theatrical expertise to training in empathetic communication for students in healthcare professions. Furthermore, technological advances in healthcare have also prompted a trend towards using information technology to drive patient-provider relationships. This technology can further reduce the interpersonal interaction in encounters between patients and healthcare professionals, and thus the means through which empathy is both communicated and experienced. The chapter focuses on a cognitive definition of empathy that is frequently used in clinical studies, rather than seeking to provide a comprehensive review of neuroscientific understandings of empathy. In the training of healthcare professionals, 'simulation' describes clinical practices in education involving realistic scenarios in an environment that poses no risk to patient safety. The importance of embodied simulation in healthcare education is supported by a study that indicates 'empathy can be improved and successfully taught at medical school especially if it is embedded in the students' actual experiences with patients'.
