Fifty-five word stories: "small jewels" for personal reflection and teaching.

Fifty-five word stories are brief pieces of creative writing that use elements of poetry, prose, or both to encapsulate key experiences in health care. These stories have appeared in Family Medicine and JAMA and have been used to teach family medicine faculty development fellows. Writers and readers of 55-word stories gain insight into key moments of the healing arts; the brevity of the pieces adds to both the writing and reading impact. Fifty-five word stories may be used with trainees to stimulate personal reflection on key training experiences or may be used by individual practitioners as a tool for professional growth.