17: REFLECTIVE RESPONSE 1 ■ 409to redefine how we interact with others. It is meant to break down the often rigid, one-
way, top- down relationships that characterize traditional provider–patient interactions
(Charles & Dharamsi, 2010; Charles, Dharamsi, & Alexander, 2011). Community service
learning has been developed in part as a response to a growing realization that while
professional education produces good technical practitioners, it does not necessarily
contribute to the development of socially responsible citizens. Student involvement in
service learning projects can help foster an applied rather than abstract sense of civic
responsibility (Waterman, 1997). Benefits for students have been seen to include posi-
tive changes in moral development, civil responsibility, critical thinking, problem analy-
sis, cultural awareness, and increased understanding of the connection between people
and their social environments (Bordelon & Phillips, 2007; Lemieux & Allen, 2007; Ngai,
2006; Roos et al., 2005). Perhaps most importantly, service learning experiences teach
students about the power of “patient voice.” Community members are used as teachers
and not solely recipients of services. This represents a significant shift in the relation-
ship. The provider– patient partnership becomes reciprocal rather than unidirectional.
This shift in the relationship has tremendous potential for changing how we per-
ceive ourselves as professionals and for how we interact with others. We are really
only now also beginning to understand that we become who we are as professionals in
part through our interactions with the people we serve (Alexander, 2008, Alexander &
Charles, 2009; Garfat & Charles, 2007). Traditionally (and continuing to today), we have
tended to see the provider-patient relationships as being one way. We give our skills and
knowledge and they receive. Their role in this process is seen as being relatively passive.
Our traditional way of interacting with patients has always ignored the true nature of
relationships. Whether we want to acknowledge it or not, human relationships, even
those of a professional nature, are bidirectional. There is always a two- way process in
any human interaction (Valsiner, 2000). The motivation for trying to develop “profes-
sional” distance from those with whom we work is commendable. We have believed
that this protects patients. However, what it can really do is dehumanize and invali-
date them (and us) in the process. This is not healthy for anyone. Rather than denying
the two- way nature of relationships, we need to challenge the underlying philosophy
behind our interactions with patients and the reasons we provide service the way we
do. The same holds true in our interactions with other professions.
There has to be room in our development of our professional identity to acknowl-
edge the importance of mutuality in relationships. We need to begin to openly accept
that if we want to work effectively with patients and other professions, then we need to
develop a sense of shared relationship. This requires that we strive to ensure that there
is room and opportunity for a joint investment in the relationship by each participant.
This is not to say that we shift the focus from task to process, thus preventing a timely
delivery of service. Rather, it is a call for an acceptance that a focus on reciprocity and
mutuality can enrich the quality of the interaction and the outcome for both the patient
and the provider.
All of this is to say that if we truly want to develop a healthier and more effective
delivery system, we need to challenge the way in which we interact with members of
other professions and with the people we serve. We need to seriously examine how we
develop our professional identities in order to identify those aspects of it that are hold-
ing back the development of reciprocal and respectful relationships with colleagues and
patients. We need to seriously ask ourselves what is it in our profession’s worldview
and way of doing things that reinforces barriers and boundaries. We also need to appre-
ciate that the other professions can help us achieve the goals of our profession rather
than seeing them as a potential threat.