2025 Theses Doctoral

Reflective Practice Within The Medical Setting In Saudi Arabia: An Exploratory Qualitative Case Study

Khoja, Afnan Abdulwahab

Reflective practice is a vital component of medical education, fostering self-awareness, critical thinking, and lifelong learning, which are essential for navigating the complexities of fast evolving healthcare. To increase their proficiency, medical practitioners need to be engaged in reflective practice. However, little is known about how faculty, who are medical practitioners, learn to convey the importance and application of reflective practice to their students’ medical practice.

All of the twenty-six medical faculty members teaching in the Personal and Professional Development Theme (PPDT) were recruited for semi-structured interviews. This qualitative case study explored the perceptions of eleven faculty members regarding their personal experiences with reflection in their medical practice and how they learn to convey to their students the relevancy and importance of reflection in their medical practice.

The data was analyzed deductively, drawing on existing theories of reflective practice, and the findings revealed that while all participants recognized the importance of reflection, they struggled to clearly define and apply it in practice. Discussion was identified as the primary method used to encourage reflective practice (82%), although 64% of participants reported resource limitations as a significant challenge. Moreover, 55% of faculty members indicated that reflecting on their own practice helped them overcome these challenges.

The study concludes that medical education policymakers and administrators must provide clear definitions and practical examples of reflective practice to bridge the gap between its theoretical importance and practical application. It also suggests that a variety of instructional strategies should be used to cater to different learning styles, rather than relying solely on discussion. Additionally, providing adequate resources and professional development opportunities for faculty is crucial.

Recommendations for integrating reflective practice into medical education in Saudi Arabia include establishing it as a core competency within the national framework, implementing structured faculty development programs, and incorporating reflection into clinical training and assessments. By making reflection a formal part of the curriculum, Saudi Arabia can enhance critical thinking and lifelong learning skills in medical practitioners, ultimately improving patient care and medical outcomes.