Compassion in Medicine: Toward New Definitions and New Institutions

What is the meaning of compassion in medicine? What is its place in the art of medicine? If asked to rank compassion as a value in medical care, most physicians and patients would probably consider it as important as science; yet the subject of compassion has received little attention in the medical literature. Since the quality of medical care is a matter of concern to both doctors and patients, it seems worthwhile to explore compassion, an essential constituent of care.1 2 3 It is interesting and perhaps indicative that Dorland's Medical Dictionary does not include a definition of compassion. Webster's Third Dictionary . . .