The Critically Conscious Clinician: Guided Reflection Journal for Mental Health Clinicians Hardcover – March 25, 2025

"The Critically Conscious Clinician" contains guided critical self-reflection pages are for patient facing clinicians building their critical consciousness skills. Critical Consciousness refers to the skill of recognizing systems of inequity, engaging in critical reflection and the commitment to taking action. Clinicians may engage in this practice to address patient’s risk of negative outcomes due to clinician bias.We often hear, “the work starts with you,” but that statement can be a cliff hanger – a daunting task for any clinician. Addressing this can be as simple as self-reflection. Building a self-reflective practice takes some work on the ground level and can build into a skill that is available to you for the rest of your career. It can look like pausing before a progress note after a hard session and asking ourselves, “were they angry, or was I scared? Is it both?” By doing this we practice developing critical consciousness. Critical consciousness refers to the skill of recognizing systems of inequality, taking time to critically reflect and the commitment to take action.Laura Gallardo, LMSW, created these guided reflection pages using frameworks from Paulo Freire and other critical consciousness scholars. Included are prompts to begin the self reflective practice, doodle pages, and encouraging words on every page. Start your journey towards impactful and thoughtful mental health care! Read more