This is an illustrative example, not a real clinical event.
All examples in this library are composites written for teaching purposes. They do not describe real patients, staff, or incidents - and they must not be copied or submitted as your own reflection. Use them to understand structure and depth, then write about your own practice.
Nurse Critical Feedback Reflection: ERA
Being on the receiving end of critical feedback tests every professional's reflective capacity. This example shows a nurse using the ERA cycle to work through feedback received in an appraisal - from the initial sting to a concrete development plan.
Experience
In my annual appraisal, my manager shared feedback from colleagues that my communication changes noticeably when the ward is under pressure: I become abrupt, stop explaining my reasoning, and colleagues - particularly junior staff and students - said they sometimes avoided approaching me during busy periods. Two specific examples were described. My manager was constructive and framed it as a development area, but I was blindsided; my self-image was of someone approachable, and my clinical performance had been rated highly.
Reflection
My honest first reaction was hurt and some resentment - I wanted to explain the context of the two examples, and for a few days I privately discounted the feedback as unfair snapshots of extreme moments. What changed my view was noticing the pattern in the feedback rather than litigating the examples: several people, independently, had experienced the same thing. That is signal, not noise. The most sobering realisation was the consequence described - people avoiding me when the ward is busiest. Under pressure is precisely when I most need colleagues to bring me concerns early, and my manner was suppressing exactly that. I had been treating brusqueness as efficiency, when it was functioning as a barrier to safety. I also recognised that I had no reliable awareness of when I shift into that mode; the stress that causes the behaviour also masks it from me.
Action
I asked two trusted colleagues to give me a discreet real-time signal when they notice the shift, giving me the in-the-moment awareness I lack. I have adopted a deliberate habit when interrupted during high pressure: pausing and responding with a set phrase - "Give me thirty seconds, then I'm with you" - which buys focus without shutting the person down. I booked onto a workshop on communication under pressure, and I asked my manager to gather informal feedback again in six months so there is an external check on progress, not just my own impression. Finally, I thanked the colleagues who raised it; if people stop telling me, the problem becomes invisible again.
Related examples
Write your own reflection
Don't copy an example - generate a reflection built from your own experience. ReflectionGuide guides you through ERA Cycle step by step.