The Impact of Empathic Tendency on Crisis Management in Pre‐Hospital 112 Health Workers: Evaluation From the Perspective of Health Management in Disasters

ABSTRACT

This study aims to investigate the association between empathic tendency and the crisis management skills of 112 emergency healthcare workers in the pre‐hospital setting and to evaluate the potential implications of this relationship for health service delivery during disasters. The population of the study consists of 34,000 health personnel working in the emergency health services units of the Ministry of Health of Türkiye, and the sample consists of 390 people working in 112 emergency health services. The Socio‐Demographic Data Form, Crisis Management Scale (CMS), and Empathic Tendency Scale (ETS) were used to collect the data. The participants had a moderate level of crisis management skills (CMS: 151.21 ± 17.62) and a moderate level of empathic tendency (ETS: 61.22 ± 9.52). A statistically significant, positive, and moderate correlation was found between ETS and CMS scores ( p  < 0.05). Individuals diagnosed with and treated for mental disorders and women had significantly higher empathic tendency and crisis management scores ( p  < 0.05). Multivariable linear regression analysis demonstrated that higher ETS scores ( β  = 0.376, p  < 0.001), participation in drills ( β  = 0.205, p  < 0.001), and a history of mental disorder diagnosis ( β  = 0.135, p  = 0.004) were independently associated with higher CMS scores. The regression model explained 22.4% of the variance in CMS scores ( R ²  = 0.224, adjusted R ²  = 0.202). Overall, the findings support a positive association between empathic tendency and crisis management scores. These findings suggest that empathic tendency may be a relevant characteristic to consider in disaster preparedness, training, and workforce development among pre‐hospital emergency healthcare workers.