Exploring Empathy in Nursing Practice: A Descriptive Study Among Nurses
Abstract
Background: Empathy is a core component of professional nursing practice, influencing patient outcomes, ethical behavior, and the quality of nurse-patient interactions. Despite its importance, empathy remains under-researched in challenging and culturally distinct settings, such as Mosul, Iraq.Objectives: This study aimed to assess the levels of empathy among nurses working in governmental hospitals in Mosul and to explore its relationship with emotional intelligence, moral sensitivity, and selected demographic and professional factors.Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted with a sample of 319 registered nurses across eight governmental hospitals in Mosul. The Toronto Empathy Questionnaire (TEQ) was used to measure empathy levels. Data was collected through self-administered questionnaires between November and December 2024. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS version 26, including descriptive and inferential statistics.Results: The mean empathy score among participants was 42.3 7.6. High empathy was observed in 38.9% of the nurses, moderate in 42.9%, and low in 18.2%. Significant associations were found between empathy and gender (p = 0.005) and education level (p = 0.019). A moderate positive correlation was also observed between empathy and emotional intelligence (r = 0.41, p < 0.001), and between empathy and moral sensitivity.Conclusion: The study reveals a generally moderate to high level of empathy among nurses in Mosuls public hospitals, which is influenced by emotional intelligence and moral sensitivity. Interventions focused on enhancing emotional regulation, reflective practice, and ethics education are recommended to strengthen empathetic capacity, particularly for nurses with lower scores.