Cooper University Health Care doctors pen book

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Two Cooper University Health Care doctors released a new book on the science of compassion and empathy and how, in short, caring for others positively affects caregivers and not just those in the medical field. 

“Wonder Drug: 7 Scientifically Proven Ways That Serving Others Is the Best Medicine for Yourself,” published by St. Martin’s Press, is a joint effort by Dr. Stephen Trzeciak, chief of medicine for the Camden health center, and Dr. Anthony Mazzarelli, emergency medicine physician and Cooper’s co-president and CEO. 

According to a recent announcement, Trzeciak and Mazzarelli began looking at compassion and empathy among health care providers in 2014 and found that when these professionals showed more compassion for patients, the patients achieved better outcomes. And, the health care workers themselves reported higher levels of well-being, resilience and resistance to burnout.

In the new book – through neuroscience and their own clinical practice experiences – the doctors explain how focusing more on others can be therapy for yourself. 

In 2019, Trzeciak and Mazzarelli released “Compassionomics: The Revolutionary Scientific Evidence That Caring Makes a Difference,” which focused on compassion in the health care industry. The latest book extends to readers beyond the field. 

In addition to serving as chief of medicine at Cooper University Health Care, Trzeciak is a physician scientist, professor and chair of medicine at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University. He also is a practicing intensivist and a National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded clinical researcher with more than 120 publications in scientific journals. 

On top of his Cooper UHC positions, Mazzarelli is also associate dean of clinical affairs for Cooper Medical School of Rowan University.