Setting the landscape for a study of academic and creative writing techniques as an aid to professional development of healthcare professionals

Penny Grubb

doi:10.1921/jpts.v12i1.282

Authors

Penny Grubb

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1921/jpts.v12i1.282

Keywords:

creative writing techniques, academic writing techniques, nurse-patient relationship, emotionally-charged experience, teaching and learning

Abstract

The purpose of this work is to set the landscape for a study to be carried out in several stages addressing the question: Will creative writing techniques allow healthcare professionals to capture the emotional journeys they experience in a way that makes a significant difference to the effectiveness of such material as teaching and professional development aids?

This paper addresses the basis for the study and the assumptions behind it, looking to map out parameters within which later studies can be carried out and a set of learning materials developed. The initial 2-year period has been used to test and enhance a staged workshop teaching model for Health Professional Studies students at levels 4, 5 and 6, using information from studies of creative writing teaching in healthcare plus work on writing techniques.

The initial work suggests that creative writing techniques are better understood as a useful developmental tool when taught in the context of academic writing. The response from students has been positive. In this first stage, the work has been a qualitative, testing-the-waters approach from which to build a framework to launch a follow-on quantitative study.

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