What Can We Learn About Debriefing From Other High-Risk/High-Stakes Industries?

Abstract

The dynamic equilibrium of repeatedly experiencing events and attempting to make sense of how to improve has been punctuated or indeed rapidly evolved when the process of how we make sense and learn, combined with how we facilitate that in other learners, came under the educational scrutiny and research prowess of such pioneers as Dewey [11], Schön [10], Kolb [12], and others. If one returns to the more commonly used terms of feedback or performance analysis or coaching to capture what we may consider debriefing, there is perhaps much we can learn from decades of post-experience analysis by other industries that strive to improve performance, mitigate risk, and ultimately, improve safety. The purpose of this study was to explore debriefing activities in high risk industries with the intention of informing healthcare practice. Materials And Methods A sequential mixed methods approach was adopted to explore the use of feedback and debriefing methodologies in ten different industries. The aims of the study were twofold: 1) To identify the types of feedback or debriefing methodologies utilised for post-event analysis and performance development within high risk industries, and 2) to explore the use of feedback/debriefing methodologies used for post-event analysis and development at one site. The first phase of the study involved surveying the current feedback or debriefing strategies utilised for post-event analysis and performance development. The second phase explored one industry in detail.