Empathy During Patient-Provider Interactions for Women With Chronic Pelvic Pain: A Qualitative Study

Background: Despite 25 years of evidence emphasizing problematic health care experiences for women with chronic pelvic pain and the benefits of clinical empathy and patient-centered care, negative patient-provider interactions for women with chronic pelvic pain persist. Purpose: The purpose of the current study was to investigate the lived experiences of patient-provider interactions from the perspective of women with chronic pelvic pain. Subjects: Thirteen women aged 18 to 65 years who had chronic pelvic pain for a minimum of 6 months and who had pursued medical consultation/care were included. Materials/Methods: This phenomenological qualitative study used semi-structured, in-depth interviews. A topic guide was used for interview questions and consisted of 5 semi-structured questions with probes, as necessary. Each participant was interviewed face-to-face and one-on-one, and interviews were audio-recorded. Qualitative data analysis software was used to manually code and analyze the data through thematic nodes using an open and inductive approach and constant comparison to facilitate interpretive phenomenological analysis. Results: Participants described negative patient-provider interactions during their health care encounters through patterns of health care provider behaviors and traits with a particular lack of empathy. Conclusions: These findings highlight the need for improved integration of research into health care provider education to develop empathetic patient-provider interactions. Provider effort to help may be a major component missing in negative patient-provider interactions for this population. Cultivating positive patient-provider interactions can advance best practices and ultimately result in the best care for women with chronic pelvic pain.