Public sector physiotherapists believe that staff supervision should be broad ranging, individualised, structured, and based on needs and goals: a qualitative study

QUESTION: What do physiotherapists consider to be the structure and content of an effective clinical supervision program for public sector staff? DESIGN: Qualitative study using emergent-systematic focus group design. PARTICIPANTS: 46 physiotherapists and six physiotherapy assistants from a large, regional, Australian health service participated in one of seven focus groups. RESULTS: Data were represented by three major categories: the content of supervision; the structure of supervision; and participants' roles and attributes. The content of supervision should encompass all issues affecting workplace experience and performance; supervision should be individualised and needs based. For the structure of supervision, a variety of methods and formats should be available, including: scheduled and unscheduled supervision (unscheduled supervision addresses needs as they arise but its usefulness can be restricted by supervisor availability); the environment should be organised to facilitate supervision; supervision should be integrated into existing practices; and supervision should be adequately prioritised and resourced to enable sustainability. In relation to participants' roles and attributes, respondents recommended: clearly defined supervisor and supervisee roles, responsibilities, skills and attributes are required to facilitate a constructive relationship on which successful supervision depends; the supervisee should take primary responsibility for leading and organising their supervision; the supervisor provides support and accountability and assists with goal setting and attainment; and successful supervision requires considerable knowledge and skills from the supervisee and supervisor (supervision education and training might be necessary). CONCLUSION: The physiotherapists' perspectives that were identified in this study are important to consider when assessing current clinical supervision models, as well as when designing and implementing effective physiotherapy supervision programs.