ABSTRACT

This chapter describes effective, high-quality palliative care through reflective practice and explains understanding of narrative construction through a series of six dialogical movements. The dialogical movements include journaling, entering the reflective spiral, the dance with Sophia, co-creating insights, weaving the narrative and dialogue with others. Reflective practice is learning through one's everyday experience to gain insights that change people as practitioners: the way one think, feel, perceive, intuit and respond to situations in practice. Reflection spans a spectrum from doing reflection as a technique to being reflective or mindful of self within the clinical moment. The chapter describes the idea that reflection can merely scratch at the surface of experience but not disturb the normal order of clinical practice, or alternatively it can dig deep into social structures. It discusses the significance of creating reflective learning environments within practice itself – through the way people appreciate the life pattern of patients and families.