Archive · 13 Sep 2026
Nursing Conference Urges Empathy, Health Literacy and Collaboration
Nurses do more than give medicines and follow instructions.
They also spend a lot of time with patients and families.
Kady Martini said nurses should listen carefully to understand what patients want and what problems they face.
Nurses should explain illnesses and medicines in simple words.
This can help patients understand their care and may lead to better health outcomes.
Other speakers said nurses and doctors are both important members of the healthcare team.
They also said nurses need good training and updated knowledge.
Heavy workloads and too few nurses can make it difficult to spend enough time talking with patients.
Kady Martini urged nurses to listen deeply and understand patients’ values, preferences and circumstances.
She said nurses must translate complex diagnoses and medication information into language patients and families can understand.
Speakers said nurses and doctors are equal partners, while nurses’ contributions often receive less recognition.
Gautam Mukhopadhyay linked effective communication and nurse training to reducing patients’ fear, particularly in cancer care.
Conference speakers called for updated curricula, stronger practical training and better staffing to support quality nursing care.
- Who
- Kady Martini, Abhijit Chowdhury, Gautam Mukhopadhyay and Partha Sarathi Mukherjee addressed nursing education, communication and healthcare teamwork.
- What
- Speakers discussed strengthening nursing practice through empathy, health literacy, communication, updated training and collaboration with doctors.
- When
- The Second Kolkata Nursing Conference was held on a Saturday; the articles do not provide a specific date.
- Where
- The conference took place in Kolkata and was organised by the Chandrakant Institute of Nursing & Health Sciences, a unit of Liver Foundation, West Bengal.
- Why
- The conference aimed to improve nurses’ knowledge and skills and emphasise the importance of health literacy and nursing’s role in healthcare.
Nursing as an Equal Profession
Traditional Doctor-Centred Perception
Recognition and healthcare roles
Nursing as an Equal Profession
Abhijit Chowdhury said nurses are as important as doctors and that both professions complement each other as equal partners.
Traditional Doctor-Centred Perception
Healthcare is often perceived as centred on doctors, which can result in nurses’ contributions receiving less recognition.
Communication and patient care
Nursing as an Equal Profession
Speakers said nurses’ close contact with patients enables them to identify people’s experiences, barriers and concerns and explain care in understandable terms.
Traditional Doctor-Centred Perception
Heavy workloads and inadequate staff-patient ratios may leave nurses too little time for detailed communication with patients and families.
- Conference
- Second Kolkata Nursing Conference
- Theme
- Innovations in Nursing Education, Practice and Research: Emphasising Health Literacy
- Keynote speaker
- Kady Martini, vice-president of evidence-based practice and implementation at Indiana University Health
- Main communication message
- Nurses should explain diagnoses, medicines and procedures clearly and empathetically.
- Healthcare partnership
- Speakers described doctors and nurses as equal partners in delivering healthcare.
- Training needs
- Nursing institutes were urged to provide stronger theoretical and practical support and updated syllabuses.
- Workforce challenge
- Heavy patient loads and inadequate staff-patient ratios can limit detailed communication with patients.