Decolonizing Looks Like: Learning About Your Own Disconnects

Decolonizing the nursing profession is an ongoing process that requires ongoing self-reflection, learning, and growth. And to do it, you need to engage in ongoing self-reflection and learning: This involves critically examining your own biases, assumptions, and practices, and actively seeking out opportunities to learn from and collaborate with diverse communities. What I often see is a disconnect. This disconnect allows nurses and other healthcare professionals, including future nurses — to ignore their own complicity in health care inequality and gloss over the internalized racism as well as both conscious and unconscious bias’ that drive them to go against their very oath to do no harm.

Learning about your own disconnects requires self-awareness and a willingness to reflect on your thoughts, beliefs, and behaviors. Here are some steps you can take to identify and address your own disconnects:

Identify your values and beliefs: Take time to reflect on your core values and beliefs. Ask yourself questions like, "What matters most to me?" and "What do I believe about the world and my place in it?"

Examine your actions: Look at your behaviors and actions and compare them to your values and beliefs. Are you living in alignment with what you say you believe? Are there areas where you're falling short?

Seek feedback: Ask trusted friends, family members, or colleagues for feedback on your actions and behaviors. Be open to hearing constructive criticism and take it as an opportunity for growth.

Practice self-reflection: Take time each day to reflect on your thoughts and actions. Consider journaling or meditation as tools for self-reflection.

Take action: Once you've identified areas of disconnect, take action to bring your values and actions into alignment. This might involve setting goals, seeking out new experiences, or working with a therapist or coach to address any underlying issues.

One tool I use to teach about sealing those connections is the Wheel of Power and Privilege by Sylvia Duckworth. It’s not the only wheel available, there are many. This wheel does focus on places of power and places of marginalization that we all may or may not occupy. For instance, she speaks to being slim vs. being robust, owning property vs. renting, being neurotypical vs. neurodivergent. Most likely, everyone has places and spaces in their lives in which they feel empowered and where they are more disempowered. I use this as the context to teach empathy and compassion, not tolerance, of folks who have different needs. How might you teach or express the disconnects we see in the nursing profession?