Browsing by Author "Sternke, Elizabeth A."

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    Comorbid Chronic Pain and Depression: Patient Perspectives on Empathy
    (Elsevier, 2016-12) Sternke, Elizabeth A.; Abrahamson, Kathleen; Bair, Matthew J.; Department of Medicine, School of Medicine
    Clinician empathy is a well-documented component of effective patient/provider communication. Evidence surrounding the association between patient perspectives on clinician empathy and perception of pain management is currently limited, particularly among patients with chronic pain and depression. The aim of this study was to analyze patients’ perspectives on the emergent theme of empathy and describe how patients construct their experiences and expectations surrounding empathic interactions. A secondary analysis of focus group data was designed using grounded theory methodology. Veterans Affairs (VA) and University Primary Care Clinics. Respondents with chronic pain and comorbid depression (N = 18) were 27 to 84 years old (mean 54.8 years), 61% women, 22% black, and 74% white. Study participants highly valued empathy and two types of empathic interactions: empathic listening and empathic action. Patients who provided examples of empathic interactions claimed that others understood, valued, and cared for them. In contrast, patients who perceived a lack of empathy and empathic interactions felt frustrated and uncared for by others (including their physicians) physically and emotionally. Patients with chronic pain and depression claimed that empathy helped them feel understood, believed, taken seriously, and that their needs were met. In demonstrating empathy and engaging in empathic interactions with patients, providers relate better to patients, better understand their life experience, and provide patient-centered care that is meaningful for patients, providers, and the health care systems within which they interact. Future research is needed to purposefully study the effects of empathic interactions on outcomes for patients with chronic pain and comorbid depression.
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    The Eight Limbs of Yoga can be Maintained in a Veteran Friendly Yoga Program
    (Wolters Kluwer, 2021) Schmid, Arlene A.; Sternke, Elizabeth A.; Do, Ai-Nghia L.; Schalk Conner, Nancy; Starnino, Vincent R.; Davis, Louanne W.; School of Social Work
    Background: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) may occur after a traumatic event and has deleterious effects on individuals, including decreased quality of life and function. Yoga is an intervention that may help with the management of PTSD symptoms, however yoga interventions in research studies frequently only include postures and breathwork, not all eight limbs of yoga. Aims and objectives: The aims of this qualitative study was to examine whether participants with PTSD in a group yoga program discussed the benefits of yoga in a way that represented the eight limbs of yoga, when answering questions about their experience of the yoga program. Methods: Qualitative data were collected after participants completed a 16-week yoga intervention. Qualitative data were collected via survey, reviewed, coded, and categorized into themes representing each of the eight limbs of yoga. Results: Overall, 108 people were randomized to the yoga intervention and 67 individuals completed the intervention and follow up questions used in these analyses. The mean age of the 67 participants in this study was 52.4 years (±12.0), the majority were male (70.2%), and most had combat-related trauma (62.7%). All eight limbs of yoga were represented in the data, including each of the five yamas and niyamas, even though the yoga intervention did not explicitly include Sanskrit terms, definitions, or education about yoga philosophy or the eight limbs of yoga. Conclusion: Results may indicate that yoga, even when only including postures, breathwork, intentions, and relaxation/meditation, may still address all of the yamas, niyamas, and the other eight limbs of yoga.