Called to Care, an online course developed by Evidence in Motion (EIM), is designed to shift healthcare towards an enhanced commitment among caretakers to high quality patient connections with an emphasis on empathy and compassion. The training program provides therapists the tools they need to focus on more personalized patient care with compassion at its core, according to an EIM news release. Overall, the training initiative is aimed at improving patient care as well as results and overall recovery.

The EIM news release indicates that Texas Physical Therapy Specialists (TexPTS), Evansville-based ProRehab, and North Carolina’s BreakThrough Physical Therapy (BTPT) have become providers of outpatient physical therapy in their regions thanks in part to this new compassionate care training initiative. These practices are the only three in the United States taking part in the training while monitoring the results with the Consultation and Relational Empathy (CARE) Measure, a validated instrument.

The Called to Care Training is based on research findings that emphasize listening, empathy, and compassion, which “is more important than ever as we try to shift away from that norm and back towards high quality connections with patients,” according to Larry Benz, DPT, OCS, MBA, co-creator of Called to Care and part owner of TexPTS, ProRehab, and BTPT. Benz states, “Called to Care has truly changed the way our PT’s treat and interact with patients.”

In addition to an online portion, Benz conducts an internal onsite session where he meets with employees to give an overview of Called to Care and its guiding principles, as noted on the EIM news release. Group sessions are also held where employees share stories of remarkable experiences with patients and then focus on the successful steps that led to these experiences.

Andrea Baumann, owner of ProRehab, says, “We are focusing more on the connecting with people, learning more about their lifestyle and goals to create a treatment plan customized to reflect those goals. We’re thrilled with the results and believe this will have a huge impact on the patients in our community.”

Source: Evidence in Motion