Below are examples of how I work – with people, individuals, teams and organisations.
Story
There is rarely time for healthcare leaders to reflect on their experiences. Creating a safe space for reflection is important, to make sense of our experiences and to support our resilience.
Working with people to create safe reflective and reflexive spaces for people to make meaning of their experiences – shaping words and artefacts into stories. My approach is based on extensive practice-based doctoral research. Storytelling acts as a reflexive tool, a catalyst for self-discovery.
My approach is used in a variety of contexts such as integration, transformation, enabling practitioners potentially to be able to capture the story of a staff or a patient in a way that they can use to improve quality and care.
“One of my research participants used the concept of the candle to prompt self-reflection, encouraging two questions - imagine as a leader, researcher, educator or student: “What is it that enables you to keep your own candle burning”? and, “How do you manage when you feel the flames really flickering and it might be snuffed out?” It is important to attend to what it is that enables people to shine brightly, creating the leadership conditions that enables us – and others – to do that.”
Relational coaching
Engaging in coaching conversations as conversational space where people are encouraged to look forward and explore their views of themselves in the context of their role and in understanding the professional issues they are bringing.
Opportunities are offered for people to look at their dilemmas differently, become more empowered, determine their own way forward, and break through the limitations they had previously identified. Rather than simply balancing the subtleties of the many coaching genres, I focus on understanding the fundamental characteristics of ethical coaching, which can then be applied as I coach across a range of settings (Iordanou, Hawley and Iordanou, 2017). This makes space to un-tap possibilities, asking questions, embracing creativity in my coaching to inspire thinking in a different way.
“Thank you so much. I really appreciated how you were able to help me sort out what I needed to do next and help me to organise my overwhelmed thoughts. I feel that you’re the first person who has really acknowledged my life and career before midwifery since I went to my university interview. It’s felt like that was quite irrelevant since, but it’s not. You helped me to see that that’s what has made me the midwife I am and the midwife I want to become. Thank you for finding that journey which anchors me, because actually that gives me a place that I come from, not just three years of uni training. I’m not quite so new and fresh which I recognise that journey, I have more to give than just three years of training. That’s made a big difference to my confidence.”
Creating relational organisational cultures
I am experienced in working with individuals, teams and organisations. To help unravel engagement challenges and arrive at new insights for cultivating collaborative futures in health and social care. Making the complexities of public engagement leadership accessible to everyone.
What if creating relationships in healthcare was as simple as beginning not with process, but with self-discovery – shining the light on relationships? How would this transform the way that the public and the NHS, staff and patients work together?
Leaders who operate in a culture of kindness appear to flourish, described by research participants as ‘organisation as family’ or ‘team as family’ (Hawley, 2021). I call this relational leadership. Re-imagining the future for leadership and public engagement puts relationships at the heart of it.
“Rachel is one of the most tenacious, committed and ethical people I have worked with so I know that her leadership will ensure the organisation / NHS will benefit from this work.”
Speaker
Telling stories of relational leadership in the NHS – of engagement – and dis-engagement – powerfully, honestly, with vulnerability and courage so that audiences feel inspired, empowered and encouraged to cultivate collaborative relationships.
Recent examples include:
Coaching and Mentoring Research Conference (2022)
Oxford Brookes University, UK
Cultivating Knowledge Conference (2022)
Sheffield Hallam University, UK
Health Services UK Research Conference (2022)
Sheffield, UK
Royal College of Nursing International Research Conference (2022)
Cardiff, UK
Start With People Conference (2022)
NHS England, UK
“I loved hearing about the doctoral research of combining narrative and visual approaches. Some valuable insights on bringing artefacts into leadership conversations to get closer to participant identitiesI loved hearing about the doctoral research of combining narrative and visual approaches. Some valuable insights on bringing artefacts into leadership conversations to get closer to participant identities.”
Webinar
At the heart of the webinars on my relational research – is a focus on the ‘relational journey’ for building collaborative relationships in healthcare.
For more information on the themes of the research or to request a webinar, please get in touch.
“I really feel valued in a way I have not at any other time working for the NHS. This is an exceptional, high calibre reflective investment in me and my role as an NHS engagement lead.”