Dear Editor,

This letter concisely addresses various schools of thought about the impact of patience in the health care setup from ancient literature to the present. Patience is the key leadership skill to be empowered in the life of a health professional to capitulate or endure delay, difficulty, or agony without getting agitated or disturbed in the workplace (Bushardt, 2016, pp. 13-14). From the Buddhist perspective, patience is the righteousness of confronting agony and frustrations with a peaceful state of mind (Jeffrey, and Pawl, 2025, p. e70025). Historically, patience is described as khanti in the sixth perfection of the Theravada tradition and as kṣānti in the third perfection of the Mahayana tradition (Apple, 2012). According to spiritual books of Indian origin, the concept of patience in the religion of Hinduism is referred to as pariksaha (forbearance), sahiṣṇutā (patient toleration), titiksha (patient endurance of suffering) and sahanshilata (suffer with patience). The Bhagavad Gita emphasizes patience as a part of Sthitaprajna (the state of equanimity and mental balance), niṣkāma karma (dispassionate action) and anāsakti (maintaining a state of non-attachment) (Singh, Raina, and Oman, 2023, pp. 195-209). In the biblical tradition, patience is regarded as the greatest virtue for enduring moral failings that provoke negative emotions, grief, or distress. (Jeffrey, and Pawl, 2025, p. e70025). In Islam, the Holy Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet (PBUH) serve as foundational guides for reducing moral evils, enduring physical suffering, and cultivating sabr (patience) through steadfast belief in Allah (SWT) (Aslan, 2001, pp. 24-47). According to Abu Huraira’s narration, the Prophet (PBUH) said that "If Allah wants to do good to somebody, He afflicts him with trials," elucidating that steadfast individuals who are tested by trials may be offered blissful tidings (Sahih al-Bukhari 5645, n.d.). The hypothetical aspect of patience (“patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet”) was narrated by the eminent thinker Aristotle, and the viability of patience (“patience is the key to all doors of success”) was described by Stoic philosopher Marcus Aurelius (Bommarito, 2014, pp. 269–286). Therefore, the concept of virtue may have significant importance in the comprehension of an individual's capacity to regulate their emotions (Kim, et al., 2024, p. 11).

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References

1. Apple, J.B., 2012. Perfections (six and ten)-Buddhism. In: oxford bibliographies. Oxford University Press. Available at https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/display/document/obo-9780195393521/obo-9780195393521-0034.xml [Accessed 1 February 2026]
2. Aslan, A., 2001. The fall and the overcoming of evil and suffering in Islam. In: P., Koslowski, eds. The origin and the overcoming of evil and suffering in the world religions. A discourse of the world religions. Vol. 2. Netherlands: Springer, Dordrecht.
3. Bommarito, N., 2014. Patience and perspective. Philosophy East and West, 55(2), pp. 269–286.
4. Bushardt, R.L., 2016. Patience is still a virtue. J the American Academy of Physician Associates, 29(5), pp. 13-14.
5. Jeffrey, A., and Pawl, T., 2025. The virtue of patience. Philosophy Compass, 20(3), p. e70025.
6. Kim, J.H., Chun, J., Kim, J., Ju, H.J., Kim, B.J., Jeong, J., et al., 2024. Emotion regulation from a virtue perspective. BMC Psychology, 12(1), p. 11.
7. Sahih al-Bukhari 5645, n.d. Book 75, Hadith 5. Available at: https://sunnah.com/bukhari:5645 [Accessed 1 February 2026]
8. Singh, K., Raina, M., and Oman, D., 2023. Positive Psychology and Hinduism. In: E.B., Davis, Jr., E.L., Worthington, S.A. Schnitker, eds. Handbook of Positive Psychology, Religion, and Spirituality. Switzerland: Springer, Cham.