The concept of ‘psychological safety’ has emerged to describe an environment where there is a shared belief amongst individuals that it is safe to engage in interpersonal risk-taking in the workplace. In a psychologically safe environment, we feel as though our colleagues will not reject people for being themselves or for saying what they think, we respect each others competence, are interested in each other as people, and have positive intentions for one another.

In this episode, we talk all about all about this idea of psychological safety as applied to medical students. What environments have made our panel feel psychologically safe? How hard is it to learn when you don’t feel safe? How can we help to cultivate a psychologically safe environment at medical school?

In this episode, the panel are joined by Gabrielle Mathews, an academic foundation doctor and multi-award winning children and young people's health advocate based in London. 

We also hear from Amy Edmondson, professor of leadership and management at Harvard Business School, and from Don Berwick, physician and founder of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. This audio is used with permission from BMJ and IHI, and was recorded at the BMJ IHI International Forum on Quality and Safety in Healthcare, at the ExCeL in London, April 12th 2024.

Éabha is a guest judge at this year's Immerse Education Essay Competition. For more information, and the chance to win a fully funded place at one of their summer schools, check out this link: https://www.immerse.education/essay-competition/

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