ABSTRACT
Storytelling is an appropriate tool to use in situations where the development of language, such as the technical terms that are used in the healthcare professions, is required. Storytelling can be used as a research tool to identify the archetypes that exist in the healthcare setting. Using the keyword ‘storytelling’ to explore the literature in the traditional healthcare education texts did not yield many results. In addition, it allows the exploration of the meaning of experiences, including those encountered on a daily basis in healthcare, such as illness, death and dying. Reflections on nursing practice and patients’ narratives have been explored by J. M. Koenig and C. R. Zorn, who propose that the types of stories that emerge are those of illness, crisis and transition. In medical education, it has been suggested that four types of stories are used, namely clinical imagination, exploring othernesses, stories as a research tool and critical reflection on practice.
