Exploring the benefits and challenges of administrative clinical supervision in nursing and midwifery

Abstract

Objective: To explore the benefits and challenges of administrative clinical supervision at the unit.Methods: Clinical Supervision has been recognised as a core component of professional support for present-day nursing and midwifery practice. Effective administrative clinical supervision is beneficial to employees by providing support leading to the development of self-esteem, reducing emotional stress and improving commitment to an organisation’s vision and goals. Using aesthetic phenomenological approach, nurses' lived experience with administrative clinical supervision in a clinical unit of the hospital was explored and allowed in-depth description of administrative clinical supervision thoroughly. The participants were purposively sampled from six hospitals in Accra and comprised supervisors (n = 18) and supervisees (n = 12).Results: The benefits of administrative clinical supervision include reduction in infection rates, improved competence, client satisfaction, reduction in negligence, efficiency, accountability and feeling of being appreciated. Challenges of administrative clinical supervision were managerial challenges, limited time, interpersonal conflict with colleagues, and increased workload.Conclusions: Practical Implications: Administrative clinical supervision has implications for nursing and midwifery education and practice. This calls for measures that promote practitioners’ personal and professional development through fostering a supportive relationship and working alliance. Originality: This study employed the use of Aesthetic Phenomenology to tell the stories of clinical supervision from the personified interpretations unlike other studies that simply adopt descriptive phenomenology. It is the first of its kind in Ghana to the best of our knowledge.

Nursing Clinical Instructors' Perspectives on Clinical Learning Environment Challenges: A Qualitative Study

“…The first theme gathered in this study agreed with the previous study (Sadeghi et al, 2019),that point to subjectivism, a lack of scientific and nursing practice expertise, a lack of dedication to teaching, and a focus on routine learning were all evident indications of low clinical competence, which hampered students' ability to develop their clinical competence. The second theme of our study consistent with those (Achempim-Ansong et al, 2022), that mentioned, there are numerous challenges of clinical administration . These include a lack of authority, poor communication, time constraints, interpersonal conflicts with coworkers, a rise in workload, exhaustion, a shortage of employees, a lack of enthusiasm on the part of supervisees, and a lack of trust.…”

Barriers and Facilitators to Clinical Supervision in Ghana: A Scoping Review

“…Challenges accounting for ineffective implementation of clinical supervision and preceptorship in Ghana can be attributed to several factors including those related to the supervisor and the supervisee, educational institutions, and the management of the clinical setting ( Abuosi et al, 2022 ; Achempim-Ansong et al, 2021 ; Adjei et al, 2018 ; Amoo et al, 2022; Aryere, 2018 ; Asirifi et al, 2013 ; Atakro, 2017 ; Ebu-Enyan et al, 2021b; Kobekyaa & Naidoo, 2023 ; Mensah et al, 2021 ). The uncooperative attitude of students toward clinical placement was identified as a factor to poor clinical supervision ( Achempim-Ansong et al, 2021 ; Atakro, 2017; Ebu-Enyan et al, 2021a, 2021b). A research subject in Ebu-Enyan et al (2021b) noted that: “Some of the challenges are students not obeying instructions given to them; students not coming to work as they are supposed to and also being disrespectful.…”

“…al., (2022, p.5 ) rated their clinical setting experience as inadequate and had this to say: “Comparing it to what we actually learn at the skills lab, I would say it's not adequate in the sense that we do not actually get the opportunity to practice everything that we’ve learned. What we do will sometimes be dependent on what is happening at the ward.” This can potentially be attributed to the lack of resources in the clinical setting and the workload on the wards ( Achempim-Ansong et al, 2021 ; Amoo et al, 2022; Aryere, 2018; Asirifi et al, 2017 ; Ebu-Enyan et al, 2021a; Kobekyaa & Naidoo, 2023 ). A preceptor in Asirifi et al (2017, p.6) noted that, “the students were willing to work but because of inadequate equipment in the wards it is difficult for them to practice well.…”