Compassion and Self-Regulation in Clinical Practice

Clinical Flow with Physiotherapist Andrew Koppejan

Outcome Measures 2.0: I'm building a web-based tool (called Clinio360) that will help physical therapists get below the surface of what makes their patients tick, click here to Join the Journey!

Join hosts Andrew and Maxi on this episode of the ignitephysio podcast, as they unpack the topic of compassion, along with the importance of mindfulness and self-regulation in clinical practice.

Following up on the previous episode with guest Glenda Lane, Understanding the Cause of Burnout, they continue the discussion of ways to regulate ourselves in order to avoid burnout. They dive deeper into understanding the state of compassion, and reflect on ways that clinicians can navigate compassionate client interactions while also looking at the importance of self-regulation to manage one's own energy.

With inspiration drawn from the book, Attending Medicine, Mindfulness, and Humanity by Dr. Ronald Epstein, Andrew shares key passages about compassion in a clinical setting. Together, they discuss the varying definitions of compassion from several different authors and research findings, and how empathy and sympathetic regulation with our client’s distress can impact us.

Mindfulness is observing, understanding and regulating my own emotional reactions so I can reliably sustain presence in the face of a patient’s distress and my own. -Dr. Ronald Epstein, Attending Medicine, Mindfulness, and Humanity

With self-awareness and mindfulness being the key to self-regulation, Andrew and Maxi discuss how we can shift from one state into another, rather than disengage and withdraw for self-protection.

Some of the key topics discussed include:

• The critical skill of self-regulating so we’re not carrying the distress of others.
• How the sticky residue carrying others' distress affects our interactions with people in and out of work, which can cause a negative feedback loop.
• How to effectively transition our state between the clinic and personal life with a quick meditation at the end of your work day.

Mentioned in this episode:

Outcome Measures 2.0

I'm building a web-based tool (called Clinio360) that will help physical therapists get below the surface of what makes their patients tick, click the link to join the journey - https://pages.360clinician.com