This work investigates whether online healthcare experts from Germany and the UK make use of empathy and Patient-Centered Communication (PCC) in their expert responses to online patients struggling with depression. The work primarily focuses on cross-cultural differences and similarities for which a discourse-analytical approach is used in order to analyse relevant communicative strategies. Based on the findings, the author aims to deduce possible implications and questions whether cultural awareness is needed in online Ask-The-Expert healthcare contexts. The author claims that empathy and PCC is used differently in the online healthcare context in Germany and the UK.
Ask-The-Expert advice-giving websites and forums have become common in the World Wide Web to provide users with lay person or expert opinions and support on specific topics. Online health support and intervention has become particularly popular.
Studies have provided evidence that the usage of empathy in clinical consultations can increase patient satisfaction, adherence to treatment plans and recovery rates. It is especially patients with psychosocial problems that have been found to be more likely to want and expect PCC in medical consultations. While it is widely accepted that empathy and PCC is key to successful medical face-to-face consultations, some research has suggested that emphatic communicative strategies are harder to achieve in online communication. It has even been suggested that empathy and PCC might not be deemed important by either the online expert or the patient.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Theoretical Background
3. Methodology
3.1. Data
3.2. Data Collection Procedure
3.3. Coding Scheme
4. Results
4.1. Realization of PPC and Empathy
4.2. Cross-cultural comparison
5. Discussion
6. Conclusion
Research Objectives and Thematic Scope
This study investigates how healthcare experts from Germany and the UK utilize empathy and patient-centered communication (PCC) when responding to online queries from patients suffering from depression. By employing a discourse-analytical approach, the research aims to identify cross-cultural similarities and differences in communicative strategies, assessing whether cultural awareness is necessary in digital medical advice contexts.
- Cross-cultural comparison of German and UK healthcare websites.
- Discourse-analytical analysis of empathy and patient-centered communication.
- Examination of expert response strategies for depression queries.
- Identification of communicative patterns in asynchronous online consultations.
- Evaluation of linguistic adaptation in digital health advice.
Excerpt from the Book
3. Methodology
German and English expert responses from health service advice interactions were collected from the German website Lifeline and from the UK website NetDoctor (cf. Appendix 1). Two subsequent corpora were created, each containing 20 expert responses amounting to a total of 40 responses. The expert responses all relate to queries dealing with depression.
The German website Lifeline was chosen, because it a well established healthcare website which is managed by the publishing company Funke-Mediengruppe. It offers a range of healthcare advice in the form of articles and expert discussion forums. The website is run and supported by doctors and medical journalists which interview experts, evaluate studies and attend medical congresses on a regular basis. They emphasize that the website’s aim is not to substitute an actual doctor’s appointment, but rather aim at increasing the quality of doctor-patient relationship by offering information. Lifeline’s health advice services are free of charge and users who have medical questions only have to register to post a question. All doctors and their credentials are listed in the impress of the website. User’s questions and expert responses that were sampled for the purpose of this study were posted between 2011 and 2017.
The website NetDoctor was chosen for investigation, because it is UK’s leading independent healthcare website offering users access to a variety of different health information. NetDoctor is run by the publishing division Hearst Magazine UK. The website’s operators claim that their aim is to break down medical language barriers and not replace a face-to-face doctor’s appointment, meaning to simplify medical information so that it is understandable for everyone.
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: This chapter introduces the rise of online healthcare platforms and outlines the research objective to analyze empathy and patient-centered communication in depression-related expert responses.
2. Theoretical Background: This section provides a conceptual framework for advice-giving, digital healthcare communication, and the principles of patient-centered models in medical consultations.
3. Methodology: This chapter details the compilation of the German and English corpora from specific websites and describes the coding scheme adapted from previous frameworks.
4. Results: This chapter presents the quantitative and qualitative findings, comparing the usage frequency of empathy, advice, and other communicative strategies across both cultures.
5. Discussion: This section interprets the findings in light of existing literature, discussing the implications of cultural differences and the role of mitigation in online medical advice.
6. Conclusion: This final chapter summarizes the study's insights, noting that while cultural differences exist, empathy and patient-centered communication remain core elements in digital medical interactions.
Keywords
Patient-centered communication, PCC, Empathy, Online healthcare, Ask-the-expert, Depression, Discourse analysis, Cross-cultural comparison, Digital medical advice, Communicative strategies, Lifeline, NetDoctor, Medical linguistics, Health communication, Advice-giving.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this research?
The study focuses on how healthcare experts in Germany and the UK employ empathy and patient-centered communication in their written responses to online queries regarding depression.
What are the primary themes addressed in the work?
The themes include digital healthcare advice, cross-cultural communication patterns, the realization of patient-centeredness, and the linguistic strategies used to establish rapport with patients.
What is the main objective of the analysis?
The primary goal is to determine if German and English experts differ in their use of emphatic and patient-centered strategies and to assess the role of cultural background in digital consultations.
Which scientific method is applied?
The research utilizes a discourse-analytical approach to perform a qualitative and quantitative content analysis of expert responses within two small-sized, purpose-built corpora.
What topics are covered in the main body of the work?
The main body covers the theoretical definition of advice and PCC, the methodology of data collection, detailed results of coding frequencies, and a comparative discussion of the findings.
Which keywords best characterize this study?
Keywords include Patient-centered communication, Empathy, Online healthcare, Depression, Discourse analysis, and Cross-cultural comparison.
Why was the topic of depression chosen for this investigation?
Depression was selected because it involves significant psychological strain, making patient-centered and empathetic communication particularly essential for effective advice in this context.
How does the potential for user follow-up differ between the two platforms?
On the German platform Lifeline, users can reply to expert responses, whereas the English platform NetDoctor does not allow patients to easily leave follow-up comments, which influences expert response length and style.
- Arbeit zitieren
- Katja Grasberger (Autor:in), 2018, A cross-cultural comparison of Patient-Centered Communication and empathy on Ask-The-Expert healthcare websites, München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/497956
