Introduction to GP Supervision
GP Supervision is the foundation of generalist training in Australia, but not everywhere around the world.
As an apprenticeship model, the relative autonomy of junior doctors in general practice makes the focus of supervision patient safety above all else. This in turn makes the effectiveness of the Supervisor critical, with effectiveness coming down to their:
Accessibility
Approachability
Supportiveness
Clinical Skills
Communication and Teaching Skills
A GP supervisor is a general practitioner who establishes and maintains an educational alliance that supports the clinical, educational and personal development of a registrar.
Clinical and Educational Components
Clinical supervision is about ensuring that the patient is safe, whilst educational supervision is about ensuring the Registrar is learning.
CLINICAL SUPERVISION
Supervisors must have ‘clinical oversight’ of the management of their registrar’s patients, including quality of care and patient safety. Development of a clinical supervision plan is recommended to take into account factors such as:
- Ad hoc supervision arrangements – how will this occur?
- Formative assessments – when will these take place in the practice?
EDUCATIONAL SUPERVISION
Supervisors are expected to guide their registrar’s educational development through implementation of a learning plan incorporating factors such as:
- Identifying learning needs
- Formal and informal teaching
- Providing feedback
But there is more to supervision than this. When we are supervising there are many opportunities for improvement. We are not just aiming to develop ‘safe’ doctors. We are also looking at how whilst supervising we can improve the quality of clinical decision making. Some educational supervision will be added to activities that may appear at first sight to be about clinical supervision.
Four Core Skills of Supervision
Seven roles of GP Supervision
Conflicts in the GP Supervisor role
Date reviewed: 26 October 2021