The Rev Bryan Vernon presented a pre-conference workshop at AMEE in Glasgow in September on “The artist inside us all: creative tools for reflection on personal growth towards professionalism” with two Dutch colleagues – Veronica Selleger and Benno Bonke. This experiential workshop enabled participants to reflect on their own professional practice while using methods that they could adopt for facilitating reflection in their own contexts. Among other exercises participants were asked to select a postcard which touched them in some way, preferably in a way that highlighted something uncomfortable in professional or even personal life. Because such an exercise can feel voyeuristic on the part of the facilitators, I modelled this: there were three cards which I had not seen in advance and I chose one which evoked an occasion where I had felt very alone and empty when preparing to teach. We also used singing, polymer clay, drawing and poetry, and showed that these were very effective vehicles for helping people reflect in greater depth, while highlighting the importance of creating a space that feels safe. Feedback was excellent. “This MUST be offered again in future AMEE conferences”, said one comment.

The Rev Bryan Vernon, School of Medical Education