Abstract
In the UK's health and care system, the cornerstone is safe, effective, and evidence-informed person-centered care. The pursuit of consistent high-quality care is an imperative, demanding the unwavering commitment of healthcare professionals. However, the increasingly complexity of healthcare, coupled with escalating costs, uncertainties in the work environment, recruitment and retention challenges, and the alarming rise in staff sickness and burnout, pose formidable obstacles (Aiken et al., 2023; Villarante et al., 2023).
Registered nurses, despite their comprehensive theoretical knowledge and philosophical grounding, confront emotionally taxing work.
Reflection emerges as a transformative tool, enabling nurses to connect with their inner selves, nurturing emotional literacy, and honing critical thinking skills. This introspective process unpacks their actions, emotions, decisions, facilitating a fresh perspective of self-awareness and growth. Facilitators of reflective spaces reap benefits, creating an ecosystem of mutual growth. Moreno and Rangael's exploration of defining moments in their recent work on caring mentorship encapsulates these moments through elevation, insights, pride, connection, and belonging, painting a vivid portrayal of nursing work (Moreno & Rangel, 2023).
Despite its undeniable importance, it is surprising that regular opportunities for reflective or restorative clinical supervision are not widespread, particularly within the UK and the US healthcare systems. The term "clinical supervision" lacks uniform recognition and holds multiple interpretations, often associated with direct clinical observation for competence assessment or managerial supervision. In 2019, UK's statutory regulators of health and care professionals characterised reflection as a cognitive process, wherein individuals dissect experiences to glean insights encompassing their entire practice. Their definition emphasized the role of reflection in continual self-improvement and quality enhancement.
Reflective practice emerges as a pivotal mechanism for nurturing nursing resilience, mitigating moral distress, and fostering overall well-being, enabling professionals to not only survive but thrive in their demanding work environments. Yet, a critical void exists in the broader acknowledgment that reflective practice stands as a foundational requirement for attaining the Institute for Healthcare Improvement's quintuple aim. This holistic aim encompasses enhancing healthcare outcomes and quality of care, improving population health and well-being, optimizing patient and caregiver experiences, cost reduction, and enhancing the work lives of healthcare providers. The notion that reflective practice contributes positively to these objectives rather than imposing an additional burden to employers remains unappreciated.
Society and professionals warrant an elevated standard of care. Such a standard is a human right, encompassing not only those who receive care but also those who provide it. The question then arises: How can 135,000 Sigma nurses unite with one voice?
In conclusion, the journey towards sustained excellence in nursing care necessitates reflective practice as an intrinsic element. As nurses engage in reflection, they cultivate resilience, enhance well-being, and achieve a profound understanding of their roles in a complex ecosystem. Acknowledging and integrating reflective practice across the system is an essential step in fulfilling the promise of holistic healthcare, and affirming the dignity of professionals and those they serve. It is a shared pursuit for a brighter future that stands at the intersection of quality, compassion, and human rights.
Notes
Presenter notes available in attached slide deck.
References: Aiken, LH., Lasater, KB., Sloane, DM., et al. Physician and Nurse Well-Being and Preferred Interventions to Address Burnout in Hospital Practice: Factors Associated With Turnover, Outcomes, and Patient Safety. JAMA Health Forum. 2023;4(7):e231809. doi:10.1001/jamahealthforum.2023.1809
Bosanquet, J. (2021) Providing not prescribing: fostering a culture of wellbeing in nursing. Editorial. Journal of Research in Nursing, 26 (5). pp.367-375. doi:10.1177/17449871211031708
Moreno, J.V., Rangel, J. (2023). Caring Mentorship in Nursing Leadership. In: Rollins Gantz, N., Hafsteinsdóttir, T.B. (eds) Mentoring in Nursing through Narrative Stories Across the World . Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-25204-4_2
Nundy, S. Cooper, LA. Mate, KS (2022) The Quintuple Aim for Health Care Improvement: A New Imperative to Advance Health Equity. JAMA, 327(6). pp. 521–522. doi:10.1001/jama.2021.25181
Nursing and Midwifery Council. et al (2019) Benefits of becoming a reflective practitioner. A joint statement of support from Chief Executives of statutory regulators of health and care professionals benefits-of-becoming-a-reflective-practitioner---joint-statement-2019.pdf (nmc.org.uk)
Sainsbury, J., Butterworth, T., Simbani, N., Walsh, L., Bosanquet, J. (2022) Cultivating psychological safety through clinical supervision. Sigma Theta Tau webinar 5 July 2022 http://hdl.handle.net/10755/22736
Villarante, DM., O'Donoghue, SC., Medeiros, M., Milton, E. et al. (2023) A National Survey of Stress and Burnout in Critical Care Nurses: A Prepandemic Study. Dimensions of Critical Care Nursing, 42(5). pp 248-254. doi: 10.1097/DCC.0000000000000598 https://journals.lww.com/dccnjournal/abstract/2023/09000/a_national_survey_of_stress_and_burnout_in.3.aspx?context=latestarticles
Westwood, G. et al (2022) A joint statement by four UK nursing and health charities- Regular Protected Time for Reflective Practice in Nursing and Midwifery. Reflective-practice-joint-statement.pdf (fons.org)
Sigma Membership
Pi Mu
Type
Presentation
Format Type
Text-based Document
Study Design/Type
Other
Research Approach
Other
Keywords:
Reflective Learning, Reflective Practice, Nursing Practice, Resilience, Hardiness, Psychological Well-Being, Work Environment, Organizational Culture
Recommended Citation
Bosanquet, Joanne P., "Empowering Nursing Through Reflective Practice: A Path to Resilience, Well-Being, and Healthful Workplace Cultures" (2026). Creating Healthy Work Environments (CHWE). 106.
https://www.sigmarepository.org/chwe/2024/presentations_2024/106
Conference Name
Creating Healthy Work Environments
Conference Host
Sigma Theta Tau International
Conference Location
Washington, DC, USA
Conference Year
2024
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All rights reserved by the author(s) and/or publisher(s) listed in this item record unless relinquished in whole or part by a rights notation or a Creative Commons License present in this item record. All permission requests should be directed accordingly and not to the Sigma Repository. All submitting authors or publishers have affirmed that when using material in their work where they do not own copyright, they have obtained permission of the copyright holder prior to submission and the rights holder has been acknowledged as necessary.
Review Type
Abstract Review Only: Reviewed by Event Host
Acquisition
Proxy-submission
Date of Issue
2026-02-27
Empowering Nursing Through Reflective Practice: A Path to Resilience, Well-Being, and Healthful Workplace Cultures
Washington, DC, USA
In the UK's health and care system, the cornerstone is safe, effective, and evidence-informed person-centered care. The pursuit of consistent high-quality care is an imperative, demanding the unwavering commitment of healthcare professionals. However, the increasingly complexity of healthcare, coupled with escalating costs, uncertainties in the work environment, recruitment and retention challenges, and the alarming rise in staff sickness and burnout, pose formidable obstacles (Aiken et al., 2023; Villarante et al., 2023).
Registered nurses, despite their comprehensive theoretical knowledge and philosophical grounding, confront emotionally taxing work.
Reflection emerges as a transformative tool, enabling nurses to connect with their inner selves, nurturing emotional literacy, and honing critical thinking skills. This introspective process unpacks their actions, emotions, decisions, facilitating a fresh perspective of self-awareness and growth. Facilitators of reflective spaces reap benefits, creating an ecosystem of mutual growth. Moreno and Rangael's exploration of defining moments in their recent work on caring mentorship encapsulates these moments through elevation, insights, pride, connection, and belonging, painting a vivid portrayal of nursing work (Moreno & Rangel, 2023).
Despite its undeniable importance, it is surprising that regular opportunities for reflective or restorative clinical supervision are not widespread, particularly within the UK and the US healthcare systems. The term "clinical supervision" lacks uniform recognition and holds multiple interpretations, often associated with direct clinical observation for competence assessment or managerial supervision. In 2019, UK's statutory regulators of health and care professionals characterised reflection as a cognitive process, wherein individuals dissect experiences to glean insights encompassing their entire practice. Their definition emphasized the role of reflection in continual self-improvement and quality enhancement.
Reflective practice emerges as a pivotal mechanism for nurturing nursing resilience, mitigating moral distress, and fostering overall well-being, enabling professionals to not only survive but thrive in their demanding work environments. Yet, a critical void exists in the broader acknowledgment that reflective practice stands as a foundational requirement for attaining the Institute for Healthcare Improvement's quintuple aim. This holistic aim encompasses enhancing healthcare outcomes and quality of care, improving population health and well-being, optimizing patient and caregiver experiences, cost reduction, and enhancing the work lives of healthcare providers. The notion that reflective practice contributes positively to these objectives rather than imposing an additional burden to employers remains unappreciated.
Society and professionals warrant an elevated standard of care. Such a standard is a human right, encompassing not only those who receive care but also those who provide it. The question then arises: How can 135,000 Sigma nurses unite with one voice?
In conclusion, the journey towards sustained excellence in nursing care necessitates reflective practice as an intrinsic element. As nurses engage in reflection, they cultivate resilience, enhance well-being, and achieve a profound understanding of their roles in a complex ecosystem. Acknowledging and integrating reflective practice across the system is an essential step in fulfilling the promise of holistic healthcare, and affirming the dignity of professionals and those they serve. It is a shared pursuit for a brighter future that stands at the intersection of quality, compassion, and human rights.
Description
Nursing's foundation is safe, effective, person-centred care. Contemporary challenges include increased complexity within role and society, moral distress, burnout, retention issues and lack of opportunity for professional reflection. Reflective practice is theoretically underpinned. It fosters resilience and well-being, and is a prerequisite for healthful workplace cultures.