Caring for others is the practice of making connections. Whether through love, friendship, conversation or community, giving and receiving care is something we value as human beings. In professional care contexts the right kinds of connections are essential for sustaining healthy and effective relationships both within teams and in changing the lives of the people they support.
But making connections in personal and professional life is not easy. Connections, new and old, involve uncertainty. They challenge us to find paths between what can and what cannot be controlled. And in some strange way, forming and sustaining relationships asks us to be both more and less of ourselves. There is something ‘philosophical’ about the openness, curiosity and self-awareness that such connections demand of us.
But when connection breaks down, so does the quality of care. Disconnection within teams leads to poor motivation, disillusionment, and burnout, while a lack of trust and understanding with those we support can result in alienation and resistance.
How might we think this through? This philosophical and conversation based course gives participants the time and space to think about the nature of connection, both as an idea and as an experience. It considers possibilities for learning and sustaining connections within all of the difficulties of communication in care relationships.
