Table of Contents

An Introduction to Reflective Practice
Narrative-Based Practice
Through the Looking-Glass
Writing as a Reflective Practitioner
Principles of Reflective Practice
Pulling Together
Writing for Peers; Team Creation
Why Narrative?
Metaphor and Poetry
Assessment and Evaluation
How to Begin Writing
The Learning Journal
Writing in Genre
Group Processes and Facilitation
Reflection on Reflection

About the Author

Dr Gillie Bolton is an international authority on writing and author of a long publication list including nine books (one in 4th Edition), academic papers (many in top ranking journals), as well as professional articles, poetry, and for a lay readership.  She has peer-reviewed for many journals and  has been a long serving editor of an academic and two professional journals.

Reviews

`I was interested in the work of Gillie Bolton and her ideas on the use of writing in personal and professional development. I decided to try one of her suggestions and write the story of the family′s complaint from the point of view of the parents. The first line came easily: "She nearly died you know. Our daughter nearly died." At that point my perspective on the complaint changed. By thinking about the complaint from the family′s point of view, I understood that my role in the meeting wasn′t to defend but to listen′ - General Practitioner, Bedford, British Medical Journal ‘Reflective practice and writing can change lives. It changed mine. The very act of writing down the problem, clarifying, thinking, working through the issues, being forced to commit, is powerful. Read Gillie’s book and learn more’ - Kenneth C. Calman, Vice-Chancellor and Warden, University of Durham ′I have adopted reflective writing into my medical practice and teaching over the years but never knew what I was doing. After reading Bolton, I feel I do. She has enabled me to place this method not only within clinical teaching but within human experience, joining my doctor/nurse/social worker/student writers and me with teachers, midwives, businessmen, and government workers. Trans-cultural and trans-disciplinary, this multi-voiced and highly textured work enacts the power and the practical wisdom of reflective practice. The book gives me fresh ideas for my teaching, solid theoretical frameworks for understanding it, infused commitment to the method, and grateful pride to be a member of this band of the searchers for truth and joy through writing′ - Rita Charon, Program in Narrative Medicine, Columbia University, New York ′To paraphrase William Carlos Williams, despite our wonderful technological wizardry, the physician has ultimately to fall back on his or her way of being in the world, his or her sense of self. That is the critical instrument and reflective practice is a wonderful means to that end. Gillie Bolton captures the why, what and how of this movement in medicine, and the writing examples are full of gems from physicians who have used this process with great results′ - Abraham Verghese MD, Author of My Own Country and The Tennis Partner and Director, Center for Medical Humanities and Ethics, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio ′As a reference book it is excellent. As a handbook for method it is thorough. As a stimulus to thinking afresh - and in encouraging others to do so - it may prove revolutionary′ - Towards Wholeness ′One of the strengths of this book is that, although the intangible nature of reflection could leave one hungry for more "bullet points" to pin down exactly what "it" is, Gillie Bolton here tends instead to punctuate her text with real examples of professional′ writing work... This book as a whole is a rich invitation to consider not just the how of reflectivw writing - but also the why′ - Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry