And the Doctor Said…..Creatively Researching Healthcare in North Staffordshire

Dr Jackie ReynoldsBSG ConferenceSouthampton University1st-3rd September 2014

Introduction• Background to And the

Doctor Said…• Research Design & Process• Participatory approach• Successes• Challenges• What next?

And the Doctor Said..• Staffordshire, Keele and Northumbria

Universities• AHRC Connected Communities project• Exploring people’s experiences of healthcare

in North Staffordshire (historically as well as recently)

• Four sets of creative writing workshops led by writers, actors, storytellers

• Range of ages, including many older participants.

Research Design

• Arts development in community health (White 2009)

• Medical humanities (Lovett & Tomkins 2013)

• Narrative Research (Elliott 2005)• Arts-based research (e.g. Bernard et al.

2014; Rapport 2004) • Importance of hearing ‘silenced’ voices

(Bauman 2004a, 2004b)

Research Aim

• To generate new insights into people’s experiences of health, illness and medicine in North Staffordshire

• “Self understandings do not always take the form of soothing narrative solutions to life’s dilemmas. Rather, narratives may illuminate life as we know it by raising challenging questions and exploring them from multiple angles.”

(Ochs & Capps 1996:23)

Women and Healthcare And with• Partnership with Deborah McAndrew• Intergenerational project; young Mums (3) and older

women (7)• Recruitment• Four half-day workshops• Audio-recorded conversations about health and illness• Conversations transcribed; thematic analysis;

developed into 3-Act audio-documentary• Beginnings; Remembering; And the Doctor Said…• Recorded by Unique Media Productions – shared in

project website, exhibition and book

And the Doctor Said…. And with

Sharing the Storiesw• 20 minute audio documentary• Wealth of creative writing • Published book containing all of the writing

from all workshops• Project Films• See www.andthedoctorsaid.org• Touring exhibition

Exhibition Launch at Burslem School of Art, December 2013wi

Successesw

• Positive feedback from older participants• On-going participation; exhibition opening

and book launch; involvement of family• Learning experience (writing and research)• Advantages of audio documentary over other

forms of creative writing• Partnership working

Successes

“For the creative practitioners the challenge is to stick closely to the brief and retain the discipline of addressing this at all times, rather than pursuing our own artistic instincts. The reward for success in this approach for the creative practitioner is in furnishing a more engaging environment for people contributing to research that has the potential to be rather dry. For academics there is the potential for a much deeper level of contribution from participants, who are more engaged through the use of imaginative techniques.” (Deborah McAndrew)

Challengeswi• Participant recruitment & attendance• Overcoming barriers to participation• Vulnerability of some participants• Sensitivity of subject matter• Lack of on-going engagement by younger

participants• Time constraints• Informed consent, anonymity, authorship• Presenting the data – to edit or not to edit?

What next?• On-going dissemination• Exhibition to be permanently displayed

in R & E Hub• Follow-on project• Writer in residence• Build on existing partnerships and forge

new ones• More involvement of colleagues and

partners in health• Network of creative writers • Ideas around training, further

dissemination

Acknowledgements

• Arts & Humanities Research Council • Colleagues on the research team: Mark

Webster, Dr Alannah Tomkins, Dr Geoff Walton.

• Creative practitioners Deborah McAndrew, Maria Whatton, Dave Reeves, Chrissie Hall

And most of all….the participants for their enthusiasm, and generosity in contributing to this project.

Thank youAny questions?wiMy contact details:

Dr Jackie Reynolds

j.reynolds@staffs.ac.uk

Tel. 01782 295789

Twitter @jackie_staffs

References

• Bauman, Z. (2004a) Identity: Conversations with Benedetto Vecchi. Cambridge, Polity Press.

• Bauman, Z. (2004b) Wasted Lives: Modernity and Its Outcasts. Cambridge, Polity Press.

• Bernard, M., Rickett, M., Amigoni, D., Munro, L., Murray, M. & Rezzano, J. (2014). ‘Ages and Stages: the place of theatre in the lives of older people’. Ageing and Society.

• Elliott, J. (2005) Using Narrative in Social Research. London, Sage. • Lovett, L. & Tomkins, A. (2013) Medical History Education for Health Practitioners.

London, Radcliffe. • Ochs, E. & Capps, L. (1996) ‘Narrating The Self’. Annual Review of Anthropology,

Vol. 25 pp. 19-34• Rapport, F. (2004) New Qualitative Methodologies in Health and Social Care

Research. London, Routledge• White, M. (2009) Arts Development in Community Health: A Social Tonic. Abingdon,

Radcliffe.