Narrative Pedagogy
Learning and Narrative Pedagogy
This conversation also had unexpected effect on Jennie’s understanding of her vocational choice, and the kind of life she has lived so far:
For a long time, I have agreed with my parents that it was due to the early failure in academia that I have chosen a more hands-on vocation of nursing. Now I am not so sure. You know what, I really think that if I had been successful academically, I would still have chosen it. I remember when I was in training, someone asked me: ‘You are so competent, have you thought about training to become a doctor?’ At the time, my answer was ‘Oh, I can’t bear the academic stuff.’ Looking back, I know now that I wouldn’t have wanted to be a doctor because it doesn’t allow me to have such interaction with people that I care for.
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Nursing suits me best. I love looking after people, especially those who are vulnerable and helpless. It is nothing to do with wanting to be a saviour or a hero. I do know some social workers share that kind of mentality. I love nursing because I believe everyone deserves dignity in their life, and nursing and healthcare is an important way to help maintain people’s dignity. So that’s what I’m meant to be doing – a life’s mission, if you like. It is what I found most meaningful and hugely rewarding too. You see, what I offer to the people is often returned generously. They return it with respect, appreciation, a loving attitude towards me, and there is of course, friendship. I can’t imagine any other work that would allow me to express so deeply my own beliefs and what I commit myself to.
Have you heard of compassion in healthcare? It sounds like a new buzz word, but what it says is that it is important to integrate the human dimension in healthcare. It doesn’t have to be complicated. Someone defines it as the humane quality of understanding suffering in others and wanting to do something about it. It is the kind of quality that comes naturally to children. Many of us in nursing do it. For instance, it can be really simple things such as holding the person’s hand when you talk to them or really listen to them; not treating the person in front of us as just a ‘patient’, but seeing them as someone whom we could help improve their life’s quality. It is a bit like the pedagogy you are talking about – what I do is to facilitate a process where the persons are empowered to re-claim their dignity.
