This study was carried out among 77 operating room nursing students from the first to the fourth years studying at the School of Nursing and Midwifery of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences in the academic year 2017β2018. The intervention administered to the experimental group included a 12-hour training program on expressing empathy to patients that incorporated role-playing. The Jefferson Scale of Empathy-Health Profession Student version was completed by the participants before, immediately after, and 1 month after the intervention