You’ve been asked to write an article about something you know a lot about. The deadline is approaching. You try to get started but decide the car needs to be washed instead. Procrastination triumphs. The deadline is tomorrow. You sit down at your computer; you write a sentence. You delete it.  You’re just not cut out for it; writing is for other people. Nothing makes sense. It’s so stressful. Many people are probably familiar with this scenario. Yet, we know that sharing knowledge and experience is important in healthcare. At The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust (RWT), we are passionate about supporting our staff to share their opinions, knowledge, personal journeys, successful stories, and achievements.

We have worked closely with our colleagues over the past few months. Supporting them to write articles about the fantastic work they have done in their services¹, their journeys²³, how their services impact public health⁴⁵, research projects they have completed⁶, their roles within the Trust⁷ and their opinions⁸. Their articles have been published in the Trust’s Care to Share magazine, the Institute of Health and Social Care management’s website, regional magazine and national magazine, and a range of professional body magazines. The articles have had fantastic feedback and staff have contacted us for more information or to thank the author for sharing their work.

Writing an article can help encourage people to consider another perspective, maybe opening people’s eyes by proving the status quo wrong. It can enable you to share a solution to a difficult problem or help explain a difficult topic in a more simplistic way.  It’s a great way to get people talking about issues that people know exist, but no one is talking about. Writing can help the reader learn new knowledge.

There are also benefits to the writer. Writing can be a powerful way to relieve stress, forcing you to process your thoughts and feelings. It can be a vehicle for getting something off your chest, maybe something you feel passionate about. The process of writing makes you think more deeply about a topic you might think you know very well.  Helping you gather new information and take on board new knowledge. Critiquing what you already know and looking at the topic from a range of different angles. Writing frequently exercises your ability to get tasks completed within a set time frame and work under pressure.  It helps develop and refine your vocabulary. When you first start writing, finding the right words to describe your thoughts, seems challenging but over time, your skills develop, and the process will seem much easier. Most importantly, writing can be cathartic.  It allows you to contemplate your thoughts, something we don’t often have time for in our busy lives.  Contemplation often unlocks great ideas!

Gail Parry’s experience

When I was approached to write an article, my initial reaction was yes of course; swiftly followed up by oh no! and panic.  I felt exposed and vulnerable and that my words wouldn’t be good enough and I’m going to be judged. Incredibly, my job has always involved writing, whether it be letters, reports or leaflets, policies, reports etc but I thought writing an article, well that’s different, isn’t it?

I am a reflective person and I write all the time I’ve been told I’m quite good at making up stories. One of my relatives keeps telling me to write a children’s storybook.  Writing helps me to problem solve and is a therapeutic process. I’ve been writing letters since I was very young, and I still prefer sending written cards and letters to posting on social media and worrying about saying something inappropriate or misspelling something.

So, having the opportunity to share my own experiences in a published article alongside such inspiring, clever people, made me feel proud and joyful. I love reading other people’s musings and hope my simple contribution has ignited a shared experience in someone else.  A colleague recently said, “I can officially reference you now” and I thought wow! that’s so cool.  The thing that helped was the encouragement and a leap of faith in myself.  I’ll keep practising and I will probably still feel nervous, but for me, it was a very powerful experience.

Kate Pugh’s experience

Getting involved with writing articles can be daunting at first. When Dr Nicky Eddison got in touch with me, I was nervous and excited. I had never done anything like this before and although I was thrilled to be given an opportunity to share my experiences, I felt slightly intimidated. I didn’t need to be of course, as I submitted my article and received great support. This in turn gave me the confidence to put myself forward for other articles. Seeing my published work gave me a fantastic sense of achievement. I felt proud that I had learnt a new skill and pushed myself into new territory, however daunting. I also felt empowered that my experience was worth sharing. I will continue to write articles, become more eloquent and confident along the way, and hopefully encourage others to step out of their comfort zone to do the same.

Catherine Mckeown’s experience

I had the pleasure of contributing to an article with Nicky recently and found this process both insightful and rewarding. We were able to meet remotely to discuss the topic and within a day or so the article was completed and accepted for publication! It was really nice to be able to collaborate with her and it has motivated me to consider other topics within my clinical field of orthoptics that could be written about now that I have a contact within the Trust such as Nicky to offer guidance and support. The only excuse I have now is time!

Louise Tisdale’s experience

One of the first articles I wrote was for the British Association of Chartered Physiotherapists in Amputee Rehabilitation (BACPAR) Journal in 2011.  I was the Chair of this professional network and I had completed acupuncture training to support my role in Wolverhampton’s amputee rehabilitation service. I had not had a lot of experience in writing for publication, so I had considered writing for this friendly journal a good place to start. Anticipating that a small percentage of the membership had undertaken and were using acupuncture in this speciality. I aimed to gain some peer support for myself in using this new skill as well as increase the number of case studies that had been published. As ever, the BACPAR community were encouraging, and the article was well received. In 2012 I followed it up by writing another article, jointly with a colleague⁹.

So, if you are nervous about writing, then a good place to start is by doing lots of reading. Get a feel for the different styles of writing and think about which style would suit you best. Take inspiration from others, they may even inspire you to create a style of your own. Next, read around your chosen subject and gather your thoughts into a word document. From there you can move sentences around, you can delete extraneous information and add to it. Then edit it, proofread it, and repeat the process until you are happy. Write about something you know, and you feel others may benefit from finding out about and share it with some like-minded individuals.

By Dr Nicky Eddison, Catherine Mckeown, Louise Tisdale, Dr Ros Leslie, Kate Pugh, and Gail Parry

Summary

Why not take up the challenge of writing an article? Don’t be afraid of making a mistake, writing is a process.  The first draft of any article is just that, a draft.  It will be imperfect; you will learn to be comfortable with imperfection.  Choose courage over comfort and give it a go!

If you work at RWT or Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust and would like to contribute to an article with Nicky and Ros, please get in touch!

References

1. Eddison N McKeown C and Leslie R. Using reflexivity to improve team performance. Br Assoc Prosthetists Orthotists BAPOConnect Issue 1.
2. Eddison N, Pugh K, Benyahia S, Scott, S, Mupawaenda N. Why early research skills matter: An exploration of personal journeys. Inst if Heal Soc Care Manag. https://ihscm.org.uk/2022/07/15/why-early-research-skills-matter-an-exploration-of-personal-journeys/.
3. Cook S and Eddison N. PhD, should I, shouldn’t I? institute Heal Soc Care Manag Reg Hub Mag Ed.
4. Williams J and Eddison N. How does Speech and Language contribute to public health? Br Assoc Prosthetists Orthotists BAPOConnect Issue 1.
5. Whitehouse G and Eddison N. Health protection – How do Radiographers contribute? Care to Share R Wolverhampton NHS Trust. 2022.
6. Cawdell D and Eddison N. Interventions to support youth violence: Giving young people a voice. Inst Heal Soc Care Manag. https://ihscm.org.uk/2022/07/07/interventions-to-support-youth-violence-giving-young-people-a-voice-by-danielle-cawdell-and-dr-nicky-eddison/.
7. Eddison N. Leslie R and Tisdale L. Non-medical prescribing by Allied Health Professionals. Inst Heal Soc Care.
8. Eddison N Leslie R and Parry G. The merit of lifelong learning. Inst Heal Soc Care Loop Q Mag. https://issuu.com/ihmpublish/docs/the_loop_issue_6_july-september_2022/2.
9. BACPAR. Br Assoc Chart Physiotherapists Amputee Rehabil. 2012; Spring Iss(36).