Junior Occupational Therapy Clinical Supervisors in an Acute Hospital: Experiences, Challenges, and Recommendations

Abstract

PurposeClinical education is important to professional education and various initiatives such as adequate support from senior staff, workshops to upgrade skills or workload reduction, may help junior staff to feel competent in supervising students. This phenomenological study aimed to understand the experiences of junior occupational therapy educators with two to three years’ experience as clinical supervisors to better understand their needs, and investigate if any supports were useful for them to become better clinical supervisors. MethodIndividual, semistructured interviews were conducted with five junior occupational therapists who were involved in supervising students in 2015 and 2016 in an acute hospital. Participants answered questions regarding their experiences as a clinical supervisor which were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. Data analysis was conducted using the method of phenomenological data analysis described by Giorgi. ResultsFour themes emerged from the data, namely ‘juggling and balancing facets of work’; ‘holding on to anchors’; ‘developing students to their best’; and ‘becoming a better therapist’. These themes described the clinical supervisors’ sense of responsibility when supervising students, how they depended on placement support structures; tensions between giving students room to try out skills and having to assess their competence; how their knowledge was refreshed and how they were challenged to be better therapists as they learnt to accommodate students. DiscussionThe junior clinical supervisors faced challenges in their roles, and acknowledged that at times they did not know how best to help the students. They appreciated colleagues helping with their clinical load, having a mentor that they could turn to for advice, and various supports and training to guide them. Understanding their perspectives provides insight to support the development and refinement of structures, strategies and resources for future supervisors.