First‐line managers' views of the long‐term effects of clinical supervision: how does clinical supervision support and develop leadership in health care?

There have recently been several organizational changes that have challenged nursing managers in the Finnish health care system. First‐line managers need support in their work because of organizational changes and scarce economic resources. One of these supportive measures is clinical supervision. A group of first‐line managers in a Finnish University hospital participated in a 2‐year clinical supervision intervention in 1999–2000. The managers’ perceptions of the clinical supervision were followed up twice during the intervention and 1 year after (2001). The aim of this study is to describe how the first‐line managers saw the future effects of the clinical supervision intervention 1 year after its termination. At the beginning of the intervention, the number of participating nursing managers was 32. The number of respondents in this study 1 year (2001) after the clinical supervision was 11. Data was collected using empathy‐based stories, which involved writing short essays. The respondents received orientation and a script to assist them in the writing of essays. The stories were analysed qualitatively by categorizing the responses by themes. The managers deemed that clinical supervision had, in the 3‐year time frame, positive long‐term effects on their leadership and communication skills, the desire for self‐development, self‐knowledge and coping. Managers believed that in the long run, clinical supervision would provide them with a broader perspective on work and would enhance the use of clinical supervision as a supportive measure among co‐workers. First‐line managers expect clinical supervision to have long‐term positive effects on their work and coping. Empathy‐based stories, as a method, were found suited to studies, which aim to obtaining future‐oriented knowledge.