Guiding CommitmentsCompassionate healthcare organizations reliably enable the attributes, abilities, behaviors, and skills of compassionate individuals to flourish. The value and importance of compassion and compassionate care are embedded in the culture of these organizations, modeled by their clinical and administrative leaders, and expressed in their policies, processes, and governance. The overarching commitment is that individuals and the organizations, institutions and systems in which they work must value compassionate care sufficiently to be able to use it as a lens to enable them to focus more on providing humanistic and caring care. high quality. The goal of the following commitments is to ensure that all clinicians and other health care providers are able to provide compassionate care to all whose circumstances and needs may require it.1. Commitment to Strengthening Compassionate Healthcare Leadership Healthcare leaders who embrace and model compassion foster cultures of compassionate care in their organizations and institutions. They articulate the value and benefits of compassionate care, motivate others by example, marshal resources, provide training and supportive infrastructure, and help others understand their role in this common goal (10). They use tools to assess organizational climate and the effectiveness of compassionate care delivery, and are committed to continually improving them (11). Leaders at all levels within and across organizations and systems must engage in open dialogue about the importance of compassion, educate others on how they foster an organizational culture of compassion, and create incentives around compassion. The shared goal of providing compassionate, patient- and family-centered care (12).2. Com...... middle of article ......are (23), (24), (25), (26)). It takes time for patients to share concerns and seek information, for clinicians to listen and respond, and for both to collaboratively develop a shared understanding and plans for prevention and treatment (27). However, the percentage of physicians reporting that they no longer have enough time to meet the needs of their patients has increased significantly ((28), (29)). This partly reflects the increasing number of tasks to be accomplished ((30), (31)). Physicians, feeling pressed for time or unprepared to manage their emotions, often overlook clues that might reveal the source of distress. of their patients ((32), (33)). Those engaged in performance improvement and care redesign must prioritize, not minimize, personal interactions, and must support and reward the time required to respond to the needs, concerns and distress of patients and their families..