Exposing diversity: ethnographic video narratives and collaborative learning in interdisciplinary practices

TY - CONF

T1 - Exposing diversity

T2 - Ethnography and Education Conference

AU - Nørtoft, Kamilla

AU - Nordentoft, Helle Merete

PY - 2014/8/30

Y1 - 2014/8/30

N2 - Health care is dominated by many different models and normative theories for the ways in which healthcare related meetings with patients and clients ideally speaking should take place. However, there seems to be a dialectic tension between these normative theories and situated embodied practices. A prominent research theme in health care studies is, therefore, to explicate the gap between theory and practice. The question this paper addresses is how a learning environment can be designed to bridge this theory-practice gap, expose the differences in situated interactions and qualify health professionals´ meetings with patients and relatives. In the paper we draw data from focus group discussions with interdisciplinary groups of health care professionals working in the area of care for older people. The video narratives used to initiate discussions are developed through ethnographic fieldwork in the homes of older people and in pedagogical institutions targeting older people. In the paper we look at the potentials and challenges in working with ethnographic video narratives as a pedagogical tool. Our findings indicate that the use of video narratives has the potential to expose the diversity of the ways in which different professionals interpret the same situation. We argue, that this recognition 1) qualifies professional meetings with patients and users in that they improve their ability to meet clients and relatives openly and empathetic rather than relying on formalised routines with a narrow focus on their own professional discipline and its tasks2) stimulates collaborative learning when they discuss their different interpretations of the ethnographic video narratives and achieve a deeper understanding of each other’s work and their clients’ lifeworlds, which might lead to a better understanding of their own work in relation to the overall work in a coherent care for their clientsIn this way we argue that ethnographic video narratives inform and qualify professional development and learning about clients and professionals on the levels of professional care for older citizens. The video recording of the focus groups and its analysis will be a further exploration of ethnographic video narratives as a pedagogical tool in the research area of supervision and professional development in health care work.

AB - Health care is dominated by many different models and normative theories for the ways in which healthcare related meetings with patients and clients ideally speaking should take place. However, there seems to be a dialectic tension between these normative theories and situated embodied practices. A prominent research theme in health care studies is, therefore, to explicate the gap between theory and practice. The question this paper addresses is how a learning environment can be designed to bridge this theory-practice gap, expose the differences in situated interactions and qualify health professionals´ meetings with patients and relatives. In the paper we draw data from focus group discussions with interdisciplinary groups of health care professionals working in the area of care for older people. The video narratives used to initiate discussions are developed through ethnographic fieldwork in the homes of older people and in pedagogical institutions targeting older people. In the paper we look at the potentials and challenges in working with ethnographic video narratives as a pedagogical tool. Our findings indicate that the use of video narratives has the potential to expose the diversity of the ways in which different professionals interpret the same situation. We argue, that this recognition 1) qualifies professional meetings with patients and users in that they improve their ability to meet clients and relatives openly and empathetic rather than relying on formalised routines with a narrow focus on their own professional discipline and its tasks2) stimulates collaborative learning when they discuss their different interpretations of the ethnographic video narratives and achieve a deeper understanding of each other’s work and their clients’ lifeworlds, which might lead to a better understanding of their own work in relation to the overall work in a coherent care for their clientsIn this way we argue that ethnographic video narratives inform and qualify professional development and learning about clients and professionals on the levels of professional care for older citizens. The video recording of the focus groups and its analysis will be a further exploration of ethnographic video narratives as a pedagogical tool in the research area of supervision and professional development in health care work.

KW - Interdisciplinary

KW - video

KW - learning

KW - health care

KW - senior citizens

KW - Tværfaglighed

KW - Læring

KW - Tværfaglighed

KW - Læring

M3 - Paper

Y2 - 15 September 2014 through 17 September 2014

ER -