Can we enhance the training of clinical supervisors? A national pilot study of an evidence‐based approach

Clinical supervision plays an essential part in maintaining professional standards and in achieving the National Health Service's objective of a modern workforce. Paradoxically, little is known about how supervisors themselves acquire competence, leading to lament that ‘something does not compute’. To contribute to a solution, a supervisor training manual that guided trainers in delivering continuing professional development to supervisors in an evidence‐based approach to clinical supervision was piloted nationally, in terms of the reactions of trainers ( N = 25 tutors from clinical psychology courses) and their workshop delegates ( N = 256 clinical psychology supervisors). Trainers were allocated randomly to either manual‐alone or to a manual‐plus consultancy group. The trainers all rated the manual favourably (mean rating of 78%), but there was no significant difference between the two groups. However, the supervisors within the consultancy group rated the sessions significantly more highly than their counterparts. It is concluded that brief training in an evidence‐based approach appears feasible and acceptable, making more rigorous evaluations appropriate. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Key Practitioner Message: Clinical supervision is now recognised as essential, yet supervisors tend to receive little or no training, which tends not to be evidence based. A training guide in evidence‐based clinical supervision has been disseminated and evaluated, in terms of the acceptability of the approach taken to supervision. The reactions of trainers and supervisors (all associated with clinical psychology training programmes) to this guide were positive, indicating that it merits further development and more rigorous evaluation.