Building the Reflective Healthcare Organisation

This book is intended for healthcare professionals. The aim is to introduce the idea of a reflective healthcare organization. This is achieved through an invitation to reflect on many levels. Tony Ghaye constantly refers to the reader and invites them to reflect. This is a theoretical book, which explains all facets of reflection. It frequently refers to practice by asking the reader to contemplate a variety of questions and is organized into four chapters that follow the model of reflection proposed in the introductory chapter. The introductory chapter reviews the reasons for positive action, which refers to reflective learning in an organization. Subsequently the chapter examines ten challenges that are likely to be experienced when taking action for change. Chapter 1 focuses on developing an appreciation of reflective learning. Within the chapter there are numerous examples on how to acquire an appreciation of reflective learning. All these are explained and referenced and are relevant to healthcare settings. Especially pertinent is a section that questions the importance of reflective practice. This is followed by a useful section on reframing reflective practices. This chapter also has useful tables summarizing literature on the reflective learning at individual and organization levels. Chapter 2 examines reflective learning as an innovation. Some interesting historical and contemporary examples are given on challenges faced when implementing innovation. Following such sections the reader is invited to reflect with questions promoting thinking about the situations given in the examples. The latter part of this chapter discusses challenges which are likely to be experienced when introducing innovation. Here, the work of Greenehalgh et al. (2004) and Rogers (1995) is systematically considered. Chapter 3 suggests how to influence progress when introducing reflective principles to healthcare organizations. This is done by way of action pathways that methodically examine values from staff and user perspectives. The pattern continues to examine issues to do with leadership, teamwork and conversations within healthcare setting. Particularly interesting is a section on the power of the positive question and the responses this achieves. This section is followed by some practical suggestions on ‘‘building a language of positive regard’’ (p. 176). The final chapter also contains examples from a user survey in a maternity project and explains learning that occurred as a result. Overall, this is a very useful book, both, for trained staff and students working in various areas of the healthcare setting. Staff will no doubt benefit from practical issues discussed in different sections of the book. Journal of Interprofessional Care, October 2008; 22(5): 562–563