Making sense of subjective experience

This chapter explains how subjective experience needs to be considered alongside objective and rational forms of evidence. It will help you to start to make sense of your subjective experience and identify how this fits with other forms of evidence. The chapter addresses questions of why it might be that in an era of scientific certainty and effectiveness, professionals feel increasingly anxious and uncertain and patients and clients feel increasingly uncared for. It is important that healthcare does not become objectified as ‘something’ as opposed to recognising ‘someone’ and that a range of evidence is utilised to support practice, as appropriate. The chapter begins by exploring subjective experience from the perspective of the practitioner as well as that of the patient/client. This is then related to other forms of evidence such as objective data, research findings and audit. The role that subjectivity still plays in the interpretation and implementation of such evidence is considered further and related to the stances that may be adopted. The chapter closes by contextualising the lived experience of practitioners in relation to making sense of the evidence base of their practice.