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Background: Evidence suggests empathy, an essential component of holistic patientcare, may be declining amongst medical students and residents. Yet there are only a few qualitative studies, mostly from West, exploring this phenomenon. Objective: This is a qualitative study of the learning environments of a tertiary care hospital of Pakistan, aimed to understand how junior doctors perceive and develop empathy and articulate the challenges faced by them. Methods: This case study adopted constructivist theoretical perspectives and was conducted from January 2019 to June 2019. Data was gathered from three focus group discussions and analyzed by thematic analysis. Patterns were identified and reported to generate codes, basic and organizing themes. Results: The participants were cognizant of empathy and its significance in patient management. Seniors as role models, first-hand knowledge of patients' plights, active involvement in patient care and witnessing illnesses in dear ones were facets positively influencing empathy. Salient hindrances included enormous work load, gender bias, past negative experiences, language and literacy barriers. Some participants felt like devising their own strategies to cope with workload and providing empathetic care. There is pivotal role of workplace based learning; enabling junior doctors to handle multi-dimensional doctor-patient relationship. Conclusion: Clinical environments are significant for junior doctors' grooming in attainment of empathetic patient care. Exhibiting empathy may be different in eastern and western diaspora. Faculty development could promote refined understanding of empathy and strategies to convey empathetic patientcare ensuring safe medical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Leadership is a critical competency for medical professionals, yet it is often neglected in medical training. For ObGyn residents, leadership training is particularly crucial as it significantly impacts both maternal and newborn outcomes, as well as the operational efficiency of healthcare teams. The main objective of this study was to assess the perceptions of obstetrics and gynecology residents who served as group leaders in the emergency team at the Department of Gynecology, Ward 3, Dr. Ruth K.M. Pfau Civil Hospital Karachi., Methods: A Cross-sectional survey was conducted with purposively sampled 28 year-4 residents who worked as group leaders during last 3 years (from 2018 to 2020) of their residency program at the emergency team in the department of Gynecology Ward 3 Dr Ruth KM Pfau Civil Hospital Karachi. The perceptions on leadership were assessed on 25 items scale sent through a questionnaire on email. Grading of responses was done using a 4-point ordinal scale where 1 meant little importance and 4 was regarded as having great importance. Data was summarized with relevant descriptive statistics and was analyzed on SPSS version 22., Results: The mean age of residents was 30.36. The mean leadership scores of the group of residents were calculated to be 77.50 (SD ± 9.57) while 14(50%) residents showed good and 14 (50%) showed excellent leadership skills based on cumulative scores. Of the 25 traits examined in this study, the highest reported trait was humility 3.82 (± 0.39) followed by empowerment 3.68 (± 0.77) and effective communication 3.68 (± 0.77). While responding about learning experiences, 89.3% of participants felt that the experience enhanced their decision-making skills and boosted their confidence in dealing with emergencies., Conclusion: Our study highlights the critical importance of leadership development in the training of ObGyn residents, particularly in high-pressure emergency settings. The findings reveal that residents value leadership traits such as humility, empowerment, and effective communication, which are essential for building teamwork and ensuring optimal patient outcomes and patient satisfaction., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Burnout is a syndrome comprising of personal exhaustion and poor work performance experienced by an individual. Burnout is widespread among medical professionals, particularly doctors in training, and is multi-factorial in origin. In Pakistan, multiple researches have been conducted studying extrinsic factors in relation to Burnout. Grit is an intrinsic personality trait, defined as perseverance and passion for long term goals. High levels of Grit have been linked with better academic grades and career success. Grit has the potential to influence the development of Burnout. High levels of Burnout are reported among Pakistani doctors but have not been studied with respect to intrinsic character traits. The study of Grit and Burnout offers a novel approach to curtailing Burnout among medical professionals. Objective: To determine the co-relation between the Grit score and Burnout level among post-graduate residents of Gynaecology and Obstetrics. Methodology: A cross-sectional survey-based study was carried out among the Post-graduate residents of Lady Aitchison Hospital, King Edward Medical University (KEMU) Lahore. Ethical approval for the study was taken from IRB (Institutional Review Board) of KEMU Lahore. Levels of Grit and Burnout were determined via the Short Grit Scale (SGS) and Oldenburg Burnout Inventory (OLBI) respectively. Results: There were 49 participants having a mean age of 21.1 years. A mean Grit score of 3.25 and a mean Burnout score of 42.4 was calculated from the responses. Statistical analysis via Pearson's correlation gave a value of-0.511 which shows a moderate inverse relation. Conclusion: Grit has a protective role in causing low levels of Burnout. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]