def _param_to_dict(params):
    """Returns the values of params as a dictionary.
    If params is empty, an empty dictionary is returned
    """
    paramsdict = {}
    if params:
        params = params.split(',')
        for param in params:
            key, value = param.split('=')
            paramsdict[key.strip()] = value.strip()
    return paramsdict
