Chandra Char, Ph.D., MPH Department of Family Medicine Georgetown University Medical Center Washington D.C. Empathy vs. Pity Empathy plays an important role in building relationships with others. Empathy is the ability to share and understand another person’s personal experiences on an emotional, cognitive and behavioral dimension (Moudatsou et al., 2020). An example of empathy is when we are able to …
Alice Schluger, Ph.D. Certified Wellness Practitioner, Wellness for Dancers As our masks are being lifted, the exposure of our vulnerabilities as individuals, within communities, and globally is becoming more visible. The current perspective is beginning to highlight the numerous psychological ramifications of the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic. There appears to be a looming mental health crisis among youth with potential long-standing …
Danielle Miller, MS PhD Candidate, Counseling Psychology, Ball State University Incoming Behavioral Medicine Fellow, Yale School of Medicine Person-centered medical care consists of the empowerment of patients to play active roles in their pursuit of wellness (Castro et al., 2016). Treating patients as people rather than an illness or billable code is central to humanistic, dignified medical care (Chochinov, 2023). It …
Debra Newborg, Psy.D. Licensed Psychologist Concord, MA Despite the advances in treatment and survival rates for pediatric oncology, children, unfortunately, continue to die from their disease. It is these children who provided the motivation for conducting my study in 2007. This article aims to provide a brief summary of my doctoral research. While 2007 may seem long ago in the …
Miraj U. Desai, PhD Assistant Professor Department of Psychiatry Yale University The American Psychological Association’s new apology and resolutions concerning psychology’s long-standing support of racism and inequity are long overdue. Expansive in scope, the resolutions touch on every sphere of psychology, from education and practice to science and service delivery. And yet, despite now seeking to challenge racism and bias …
Kristina Pecora, PsyD, MAPPClinical PsychologistUnited States Institute of Peace & NVision You, LLC My husband and I were fully vaccinated at the end of April. We looked forward to re-emerging from the pandemic celebrating a return to friends, family and “normal” life. The post-vaccine invites did, indeed, start coming in . . . for funerals. Suddenly, we looked at our …
Jessica L. Lawson, PhD Clinical Health Psychologist VA Connecticut Healthcare System- West Haven Yale School of Medicine She sat across from me, legs crossed and arms folded protectively around herself, as if to try to hide her body as she shared her experience with me. Gazing down at the floor she explained that she did not want to make …
Joan DelFattore, Ph.D. Professor Emerita, University of Delaware “You have no husband?” asked the oncologist, his voice full of concern. “No,” I replied. Nor do I have children or other immediate family. “Then how will you manage?” he exclaimed. The answer was a strong network of friends, cousins, colleagues, and neighbors — but when I tried to tell him that, …
