Development of critically reflective dialogues in communities of health professionals.

Critically reflective dialogues (CRD) are important for knowledge sharing and creating meaning in communities. CRD includes different aspects: being open about mistakes, critical opinion sharing, asking for and giving feedback, experimentation, challenging groupthink and research utilisation. In this article we explore whether CRD aspects change over time, through a study of two dialogues each from six different communities of veterinary health professionals. Change was studied from the perspective of observations, through analysing transcripts of dialogues, and from the perspective of community members' perceptions, through an evaluative discussion with members. The results showed that some communities became more open about mistakes, a finding that is related to an increase in trust. Other observed aspects of CRD seemed to be fairly stable over time. Community members perceived research utilisation and asking for and giving feedback to have been increased. From an analysis of perceptions of the community members it emerged that limited interaction could be associated with the epistemological conceptions of community members.

Critically reflective work behavior of health care professionals.

INTRODUCTION: Better understanding of critically reflective work behavior (CRWB), an approach for work-related informal learning, is important in order to gain more profound insight in the continuing development of health care professionals. METHODS: A survey, developed to measure CRWB and its predictors, was distributed to veterinary professionals. The authors specified a model relating CRWB to a Perceived Need for Lifelong Learning, Perceived Workload, and Opportunities for Feedback. Furthermore, research utilization was added to the concept of CRWB. The model was tested against the data, using structural equation modeling (SEM). RESULTS: The model was well represented by the data. Four factors that reflect aspects of CRWB were distinguished: (1) individual CRWB; (2) being critical in interactions with others; (3) cross-checking of information; and (4) openness to new findings. The latter 2 originated from the factor research utilization in CRWB. The Perceived Need for Lifelong Learning predicts CRWB. Neither Perceived Workload nor Opportunities for Feedback of other practitioners was related to CRWB. DISCUSSION: The results suggest that research utilization, such as cross-checking information and openness to new findings, is essential for CRWB. Furthermore, perceptions of the need for lifelong learning are more relevant for CRWB of health care professionals than qualities of the workplace.