RaMa Reflections

Thank you for coming!

I do not know, yet, what brought you to this website. May be someone told you about me or we have been on a session together, and you have something that you need help with? You have been told to do more reflection, go on a leadership course, have a mentor or a coach? Whatever the reason, you are welcome. Have a look around and if you like it then get in touch.

Beware I am not going to teach you anything, especially as I am still learning myself. However, I can tell you what I have learnt so far and together we can figure out a way to support you.

Rajan Madhok

What is Reflection?

Reflection to me is the key to becoming a better, happier and effective person. You can read all the books, take various courses, have a mentor/coach but they can only take you so far without reflection, that essential ingredient, the secret sauce if you will!

I do not see reflection as an additional activity, it is the way I live and work – it is my operating system, always in the background whenever I am doing anything. Yes, I do take time out, now and then, to make my learning explicit and you can see some of this stuff in later sections. And reflection is what has helped me live my life mantra: Do good, have fun and make (modest) money.

I am surprised at how much stuff there is about reflection on the internet, and for healthcare workers it is being rammed down their throats; reflection it seems is the latest fad. It does not have to be that way - you reflect because you want to, since it will help you live a good life, and it can be easy.

Do not believe me? Read more

About Me

My professional story is now part of the NHS archives and stored at the British Library - to access it, please go to http://sami.bl.uk/ and type C1887/1172 in the simple search screen. You can also see the documents at the bottom of this section for further details.

I could list some of the main roles and accolades – and there were a few – but one of the lessons I have learnt is that it does not matter what you did, it is what you do now and how you treat the person in front of you that will decide whether you are any good. So, on that basis, here is my short bio. I am a public health doctor who came to the UK in 1980 after initial training in Delhi and over the years worked my way up the system and held senior medical management positions in the NHS. I am now retired from full time work but do hold a number of Board level positions with various public and charitable organisations. I live in North Wales and am interested in sharing my own learning - selfishly as I believe it will help me to grow as a person - in case this can help others.

Here are the key documents that summarise my work in the NHS:
1. Personal reflections on the NHS- Volume 1 - The compendium of reflective writings (2013)
2. Personal reflections on the NHS- Volume 2 - the Jarrow March (2014)
3. Personal reflections on the NHS- Volume 3 - paper for the NHS 70 interviews (2018)
4. Personal reflections on the NHS - Volume 4 - paper for the NHS 75 conversations (2023)
5. An anthology about my views on life
6. A tribute to my teachers
7. Indo-UK health collaborations

Why Me?

By three methods we may learn wisdom
First, by reflection, which is noblest
Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and
third by experience which is the bitterest.

- Confucius

I have made the mistakes, so you do not have to. My journey was not smooth – there were major unheavels – and these ‘defeated’ me at times, and so some of what I share is from bitter experiences. Whether it will resonate with you is for you to decide and in any case one of life’s mysteries is why do not we, as humans, learn from others; the generational gap being the oft quoted lament:

Parent’s lament
When they were ready to learn
you were not
now when you want to teach them
they are too busy
to talk to you about
love, life, loss, peace and joy

You missed the chance, they say
but how could I have taught them
without knowing myself first
now they must make own mistakes
find the hard way, its all avoidable
and the cycle goes on

NEED HELP?

Well, I can try. I am not looking for work, and you do not need to feel obliged. My basic premise is that one must get under the labels- mentoring/coaching/leadership – and decide what you really need; each of these initiatives has its own place in the scheme of personal development but by organising them in a particular way these also limit you (you get boxed into a particular way of thinking and doing). The trick then is to rise above them, not see them as separate initiatives but approach your personal development ‘in the round’ and that is where reflection plays a crucial role.

To be upfront, I have no magic wand, I can be there to celebrate or commiserate with you but in the end, it is your life and you are incharge. I will be there to talk through, share my experiences, and create the ‘space’ for you to reflect to realise that you are ‘enough’ and it is all within you. As the Persian poet Hafiz said: “I wish I could show you when you are lonely or in darkness, the astonishing light of your own being”.

My Projects

I have been working with some organisations to promote reflection and add value to their programmes/projects – below is further information but please liaise directly with the relevant organisation to learn more about their specific programme.

www.thehealthcareleadership.academy

Supporting Healthcare Leadership Academy

I like the idea of leader as a philosopher, which is one of the main pillars of the HLA leadership programmes, and which means encouraging and integrating reflection into everyday practice and life of professionals.

I have conducted some sessions for various audience groups on the HLA programmes and here are two examples:
- Introduction to reflection
- Reflections about being a Board non-executive director

www.peoples-uni.org

Building on Peoples-uni work

Here is what Professor Dick Heller, Founder of Peoples-uni, has to say:

Peoples-uni helped health professionals in low- to middle-income countries gain skills in public health. Following the closure of Peoples-uni in March 2021, Rajan and I, together with others, have been thinking about next steps. We feel, backed up by survey data, that those who have already acquired these basic competencies skills should get ongoing support as part of their further professional development. You can see further details of our plans here - Home - Peoples-Praxis. Crucial to this is the ability to (continously) reflect on one's knowledge, skills, and future career, including through mentorship. The RaMa Reflections initiative can play a part in this, and I hope that people will take advantage of Rajan’s offer of help.

www.nhs70.org.uk

NHS at 70 Project

I have been both, a subject and a researcher for the NHS at 70 project; as a subject my whole professional journey is part of the archive - https://www.nhs70.org.uk/story/rajan-madhok - and as a researcher I have interviewed a range of people to record their stories. See Reflections on Covid 19 pandemic section later on.

Here is what Professor Stephanie Snow, Director of NHS at 70, has to say:

NHS at 70 began documenting the everyday place of the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) in our lives and communities in 2017. We had no idea at the outset that we would go on to capture the unfolding of the Covid-19 pandemic through the NHS Voices of Covid-19 project. The social value of oral history as a method of reflection, sense-making, and meaning-making runs through the many testimonies we are gathering. Rajan and I have worked together since 2009 when as Medical Director of Manchester PCT he had the vision to commission historical perspectives on public health and experiences of BAME clinicians that could help inform policymaking. He is now working with us as a volunteer interviewer and the collection is made richer by the involvement of people like him who are contributing their professional and life-skills to this shared endeavour so that we can make the future a better place for us all.

www.salford.ac.uk/courses/postgraduate/public-health

Supporting University of Salford Course

I have been a visiting professor at the University for years and have been interacting with their Masters in Public Health (MPH) students through masterclasses and individual support to students. We are now building on this work to help students on their life’s journey beyond the formal course.
Here is the recording of my professorial lecture in 2023 and here is the slidepack.

Here is what Dr Anna Cooper-Ryan has to say:

Reflection can help students with their development and more importantly their employability. Processing, sense checking and creating meaning around what we have learnt and experienced helps students to plan for the future, preparing them for how to apply their learning across different situations. Across both the Masters and Degree Apprenticeship there are various opportunities to learn about reflection and which will enable students to acquire the necessary knowledge and skills to better analyse events and ideas and become reflective, and successful, practitioners.

https://phfi.org/iiph-shillong

Supporting Indian Institute of Public Health

I am pleased to have been asked to join the Indian Institute of Public Health as an Adjunct Faculty with a particular focus on supporting their plan to promote reflective practice. Here is the introductory talk I gave to one of their batches of MPH students.

Covid 19 Pandemic

During the Covid 19 pandemic I have been working with the NHS at 70 History Project, and have been documenting personal experiences, in parts with some friends, and here are the personal documents produced.

First year of pandemic – 2020
1. Reflections during COVID 19 lockdown : A poetry diary
2. Our lives during 2020- an anthology

Second year of pandemic – 2021
3. Joys of small things part one -making of an allotment
4. Joys of small things part two - memorable moments
5. The (not) secret diary of Rajan Madhok, age 66+

Other Reflections

This anthology describes Helen Job’s journey through diagnosis and treatment for breast cancer in 2021-22 in North Wales. In addition, here are some professional observations on this experience.

Here is a piece I had written after a retreat at the Centre for World Peace and Health on Holy Isle near Arran Island, Scotland in 2019.

And to give thanks and celebrate friendships this is an anthology I compiled for the Ruby reunion of my graduating class from Maulana Azad Medical College, Delhi, India in 2016.

Get In Touch

Depending on your needs we will develop a package of support for you– it may be a one-off talk or ongoing, virtual or face to face, and there is the option of spending quality reflection time in North Wales! We can make arrangements for you to come and stay to gather your thoughts, nothing like being in nature and walking to review and renew oneself. But one step at a time. Let us first see if I can add value and make it easier for you to be the best you can be. Drop me an email on madhokrajan[at]gmail[dot]com