Reflective Practice refers to a physician’s ability to critically evaluate their own clinical decisions, behaviors, and performance in order to learn and improve continuously.
In the context of ACGME and residency training:
Reflective Practice is a professional competency that involves:
Recognizing strengths and limitations
Identifying errors or suboptimal care
Seeking feedback from peers, mentors, or patients
Applying insights from experience to future situations
Why it's important:
Encourages lifelong learning
Reduces cognitive biases
Enhances clinical judgment
Promotes safe, ethical, and patient-centered care
In short:
Reflective Practice = thinking about what you did, why you did it, and how you could do it better next time.