Pedagogic strategies of supervisors in healthcare placements

Purpose: Supervisors are responsible to train students in healthcare placements. Although there is knowledge about workplace learning and supervision in general, little is known about supervisors’ pedagogic strategies in specific healthcare placements. In this study, we identify how supervisors’
reasoning and interrelated actions manifest in physiotherapy and nursing work settings.
Methods: Following the stimulating recall approach, we conducted 16 interviews with supervisors at seven work settings. Using a theoretical framework of workplace supervision, we performed a deductive template analysis.
Results: Four configurations of pedagogic strategies reveal how supervision manifests in healthcare placements. The results provide unique insights into specific supervision moments, and elucidate the situatedness of the supervisors’ strategies.
Conclusions: The present study illustrates the variation in aims and focus of supervisors in placements. Supervisors’ pedagogic strategies were found to be mainly based on (A) role modelling, (B) overall support, (C) trust, and (D) letting go. Further research is needed to investigate the interplay between supervisors and students in learning situations within work settings.