Discourses of compassion from the margins of health care: the perspectives and experiences of people with a mental health condition

Figures & data

Table 1. Participant characteristics.

Age group (mean = 47)		Gender		Detention or restrictive practices experienced		Participants’ self-referenced lived experiences		Year/s contact with mental health services (mean = 15.8)
Range	n		n		n	Experiences	n	Range	n
<21	–	M	3	Y	6	Illness	1	1–5	3
21–30	2	F	7	N	4	Trauma	3	6–10	1
31–40	1					Trauma + psychosis	1	11–20	1
41–50	3					Health anxiety	1	21–30	3
51–60	1					Bipolar	1	31–40	2
>61	3					Alcoholism	1	40+	–
						Post-partum psychosis	1
						Eating disorder; body dysmorphic disorder; autism; anxiety and depression	1

Table 2. The key components and features of compassion identified by study participants.

Key component	Features	Description
Compassionate virtues of the health care professional	Warm	HCP displays a warm and calm demeanor
	Calm
	Authentic/Genuine	HCP presents authentic self during interactions
	Honest
	Non-judgemental	Judgemental attitudes were reported to be antithetical to compassion
Compassionate engagement	Uses communication skills to understand patient/client in the context of their life	HCP employs active listening to convey a sense of genuine care for the person
	Trauma-informed care	Recognition that many people have lived experience of prior trauma
		HCP considers ‘what happened to you’ rather than ‘what’s wrong with you’
Compassionate relational space and patient’s felt-sense response	Connection on a human–human level	The focus is first and foremost on the patient/client
	Validation and non-judgment	A judgemental approach was felt to be damaging to mental wellbeing