An inquiry into compassion in diagnostic radiography

Compassion is a poorly understood concept in Diagnostic Imaging (DI), but an increase in its focus was recommended in the Francis Report (2013). Much of the healthcare literature including policy and protocol has focussed on benchmarking and individualising compassion. This project aimed to conceptualise compassion in order to understand its meaning and application in DI. A constructivist approach was taken with appropriate ethical approval. Thirty-four semi-structured interviews with a purposive sample of DI ex-patients, five focus groups with approximately six student radiographers and one group of recently qualified radiographers were conducted. Tweets were also harvested from a Twitter journal club discussion between radiographers of the author’s published literature review. Data were transcribed and analysed thematically. Compassion in DI is conceptualised according to three themes constructed from the data: 1) Perceptible elements of the procedure; 2) Underlying qualities, skills and abilities of radiographers; 3) Proposed moral and ethical principles. Perceptions of an impersonal ‘production-line’ procedure can be avoided and rapport developed by exercising skills and abilities in asking patient-specific clinical questions and giving explanations. Offering information to patients about their x-ray images may compassionately reduce uncertainty and anxiety. Ethically good practice need not necessarily involve in every interaction expressions of compassion, feelings in a radiographer of caring about their patient or feelings in patients of being valued. Contradictory organisational values were exposed with an over-emphasis on individuals’ responsibility for providing compassionate care. The original contribution to knowledge is a concept of compassion bespoke to DI, components of which include qualities, skills and values underpinning perceptible acts and behaviours aimed at ameliorating suffering. Radiographers could take a proactive and critically questioning stance to the conflicting demands of efficiency and throughput at the expense of patient care. Clinical and communication skills teaching and reflective learning would promote compassionate professionalism. Compassionate future healthcare policy could be derived from an interpersonal rather than individualist philosophy.