Why We Listen

Our Mission

Listening – to cultivate resilience and wellbeing in healthcare communities.

 

What are
Listener Poets?

Listener Poets deliver healing arts programs in-person and remotely to healthcare organizations to help alleviate the stress and burnout that greatly affects people within these systems.

When thoughtful listeners hold space, people feel heard and understood, and the experience is often cathartic.

We use listening and poetry to facilitate meaningful group conversations among colleagues, strengthening the social fabric within healthcare systems and contributing to a culture where people care about each other’s wellbeing.

 
“It was really much more impactful than I expected. I would never have believed it was possible if someone had told me that I’d feel better by doing this – but I do.

I feel heard and validated and that has already gone a long way for me letting go of some of the negative emotions I have been carrying.”
— Medical Educator
 
 

Learn more
about our programs

 

We offer Listener Poet sessions, workshops, and
the Certified Listener Poet course to become a Listener Poet.

 
 

Our programs support:

  • employee wellness, morale, and retention

  • diversity, equity, and inclusion

  • organizational resilience-building

  • humanization and team cohesion

  • a better, safer patient experience

 

Where we listen

 

The Good Listening Project has worked with more than 25 partners, including premier medical institutions such as Johns Hopkins and the Mayo Clinic.

We’ve listened to over 2,000 individuals in healthcare in one-on-one and small group sessions.

 
 

Explore our work

Anthologies

 

Each collection explores the vast range of experiences and emotions within these healthcare communities.

 

Why do we share poems
and their origin stories?

Featured
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Re-set

"I grew from the experience – though I think it aged me 10 years!" This is how a resident described a turning point with a specific patient when he recognized how burned out he was.

Read More →
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Words of Silver

Although he had been through many stressful experiences in his life and recently, he always held onto his positive outlook. He took particular care to use words intentionally, paying attention to their connotations, so that his positivity extended to those that he interacted with as well.

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In the Cath Lab

“I’ve always loved hearts,” she said. She was a cardiac nurse who had been drawn to a job in the catheterization laboratory. “It’s so rare to have an opportunity to immediately do something good for somebody, but it happens often in the cath lab,” she told me.

Read More →

Annual Reports & Events

 

Read our annual reports below, browse our events page,
and learn how to get involved.

 

Click here to read our 2023 Annual Report

Click here to read our 2022 Annual Report

Click here to read our 2021 Annual Report

Click here to read our 2021 Annual Report

Click here to read our 2020 Annual Report

Click here to read our 2020 Annual Report

Meet our team

 
 

Connect with us
to learn more

If you’re a healthcare champion looking for innovative ways to support wellness initiatives in your community, we would love to hear from you.

Please choose a time to connect with us and learn more.

 

Questions?

 

If you have questions or if you would like to support good listening in your healthcare community,
please send us a message.