This video explains supervision.
Different types of supervision
Supervision takes different forms. It may be a regular planned session with each staff member, or a more informal passing conversation with a staff member about an issue.
Planned formal supervision has the advantages of regular supervision with each staff member, time to prepare, and a structured agenda ensuring Active Support is always discussed. But the set frequency and agenda may be too rigid for discussion of pressing issues.
Unplanned formal supervision also follows a structured agenda but will be ad-hoc allowing for more spontaneously occurring meetings. This supervision relies on both the supervisor and support worker being available, which may mean that only staff who the supervisor sees when on shift have opportunities for supervision and it could occur infrequently.
Planned informal supervision has the advantages of regularity and discussing topics of the supervisor’s and support worker’s choosing. But there may be a lack of continuity across sessions and avoidance of certain topics due to not having a prepared agenda.
Unplanned informal supervision has the advantage of discussing issues as they arise. For example, the supervisor can quickly discuss a matter that comes to their attention, or a support worker can seek help with a problem. But this type of supervision may be too limited in focus and occur infrequently.
Ideally, every support worker should have planned formal supervision and opportunities for other types of supervision as well. This way support workers can experience the benefits of different types of supervision.
Unplanned formal supervision also follows a structured agenda but will be ad-hoc allowing for more spontaneously occurring meetings. This supervision relies on both the supervisor and support worker being available, which may mean that only staff who the supervisor sees when on shift have opportunities for supervision and it could occur infrequently.
Planned informal supervision has the advantages of regularity and discussing topics of the supervisor’s and support worker’s choosing. But there may be a lack of continuity across sessions and avoidance of certain topics due to not having a prepared agenda.
Unplanned informal supervision has the advantage of discussing issues as they arise. For example, the supervisor can quickly discuss a matter that comes to their attention, or a support worker can seek help with a problem. But this type of supervision may be too limited in focus and occur infrequently.
Ideally, every support worker should have planned formal supervision and opportunities for other types of supervision as well. This way support workers can experience the benefits of different types of supervision.
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Questions
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- What type of supervision do you most frequently have with staff?
- How well is this type of supervision meeting the needs of staff?
- Is there another type of supervision that you are currently not using which would be beneficial for staff?
- How could you make use of this type of supervision?
The value of planned formal supervision
Planned formal supervision means meeting at a set time for a private and uninterrupted conversation about work.
It should be developmental and provide staff with the opportunity to reflect on their practice, plan and set individual goals. These are the very things that catch poor performance early and help to avoid the need for formal disciplinary processes.
In planned formal supervision, Frontline Practice Leaders:
Each organisation has policies about the regularity, time allocated and format of planned formal supervision. Ideally, it should occur with each staff member on a monthly or 6-weekly basis. As a Frontline Practice Leader, you must ensure you have the skills to take maximum advantage of supervision and the time available.
It should be developmental and provide staff with the opportunity to reflect on their practice, plan and set individual goals. These are the very things that catch poor performance early and help to avoid the need for formal disciplinary processes.
In planned formal supervision, Frontline Practice Leaders:
- review staff performance
- acknowledge good Active Support practice
- encourage staff to think critically and reflect on their practice
- help staff to identify areas of their practice for improvement
- discuss issues and problem-solve
- discuss key workers responsibilities, expectations and strategies for implementing person centred plans
- build rapport with individual staff
Each organisation has policies about the regularity, time allocated and format of planned formal supervision. Ideally, it should occur with each staff member on a monthly or 6-weekly basis. As a Frontline Practice Leader, you must ensure you have the skills to take maximum advantage of supervision and the time available.
This video demonstrates a planned formal supervision session.
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Questions
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- What was discussed in the supervision session in the video?
- How did the Practice Leader direct the conversation and help the support worker to reflect and problem solve?
- What do you think this supervision was like for the support worker?
Preparing for supervision
You need to plan and structure each supervision session to ensure it meets the intended purpose. Without sufficient planning, it is easy to lose focus from what’s important.
Prepare by:
Your organisation may have a set agenda or template to guide supervision and topics for discussion. You must also tailor the session to the individual staff member by identifying topics relevant to them. Think about their practice and the people they support. Example topics are how to support a particular person to increase their community participation, engage in a specific activity, or achieve their goals.
Prepare by:
- Reviewing notes from previous supervision sessions, as well as from observation and coaching sessions
- Identifying recent and upcoming events involving the staff member
- Reviewing the staff member’s goals
- Asking the staff member before the meeting to identify topics they would like to discuss.
Your organisation may have a set agenda or template to guide supervision and topics for discussion. You must also tailor the session to the individual staff member by identifying topics relevant to them. Think about their practice and the people they support. Example topics are how to support a particular person to increase their community participation, engage in a specific activity, or achieve their goals.
Conducting supervision
A good planned formal supervision session should:
If there are performance concerns that need to be discussed, you should:
- Have clarity of purpose for the meeting and what will be discussed
- Create a supportive, reflective and safe space
- Identify ways the staff member is working well
- Identify Active Support skill development needs
- Develop an action plan or review progress against goals identified in the plan.
If there are performance concerns that need to be discussed, you should:
- Describe the concern using examples of specific behaviour and explain its adverse impact
- Avoid accusations or insults that focus on personal characteristics
- Adopt a problem-solving approach that canvasses ideas from the staff member
Asking questions
The success of supervision depends on communication skills. The way you ask questions and listen are important for conducting effective supervision.
Think carefully how you phrase questions. You want to gather information and generate discussion. Open-ended questions are best. These questions begin with ‘how’ or ‘what’. For example, “What have you been working on?” and “How do you think you are going?” They invite the support worker to speak.
Questions that start with ‘why’ can imply blame or that something has gone wrong, so are often best avoided. Questions that just need a yes or no response should be used sparingly because they do not encourage discussion (except when followed up with an open-ended question). Here are some examples of ineffective questions and how to phrase them as effective questions.
Think carefully how you phrase questions. You want to gather information and generate discussion. Open-ended questions are best. These questions begin with ‘how’ or ‘what’. For example, “What have you been working on?” and “How do you think you are going?” They invite the support worker to speak.
Questions that start with ‘why’ can imply blame or that something has gone wrong, so are often best avoided. Questions that just need a yes or no response should be used sparingly because they do not encourage discussion (except when followed up with an open-ended question). Here are some examples of ineffective questions and how to phrase them as effective questions.
Ineffective Questions |
Effective Questions |
Why are you having this problem? |
Can you explain the problem? What challenges are you experiencing? |
Why did you do it that way? |
What was your approach? Can you explain your approach? |
Did that work? |
What happened when you tried that approach? What was the outcome? |
Why didn’t that approach work? |
What were the advantages and disadvantages of that approach? |
Why did he do that? |
How did he respond? |
He didn’t like it, did he? |
What was it like for him? |
This video demonstrates a Practice Leader using supervision skills and taking the opportunity for unplanned informal supervision with a support worker.
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Questions
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- How does the Practice Leader use the skills of asking questions in this conversation?
- Think about where you work. When and how often are there opportunities for unplanned informal supervision with the staff you manage?
Reflective practice
Asking questions also helps support workers to be reflective about their practice. In reflective practice, the Frontline Practice Leader guides the support worker to reflect on their experiences, thoughts, and feelings. The topic for discussion may be about a particular event, such as what it was like to support a person in an activity for the first time, or something that did or did not work out well.
To facilitate reflective practice, you need to ask open-ended questions. For example, you can ask the support worker:
After asking a question and inviting the support worker to speak, you need to listen attentively then summarise for the person the main points they have said, and ask them some follow-up questions. This will ensure that you stay on topic and the support worker feels encouraged to keep talking to explore more deeply their experiences, thoughts, and feelings. Avoid directing the focus away from the support worker by, for example, talking about your own experiences.
Reflective practice helps support workers to:
To facilitate reflective practice, you need to ask open-ended questions. For example, you can ask the support worker:
- What happened? Can you describe the event?
- What did you do? What were you thinking at the time?
- How did it effect other people involved?
- How did it make you feel?
- What could you do differently next time?
- What have you learnt from this experience?
- How do you feel now about the experience?
After asking a question and inviting the support worker to speak, you need to listen attentively then summarise for the person the main points they have said, and ask them some follow-up questions. This will ensure that you stay on topic and the support worker feels encouraged to keep talking to explore more deeply their experiences, thoughts, and feelings. Avoid directing the focus away from the support worker by, for example, talking about your own experiences.
Reflective practice helps support workers to:
- Critically think about their experiences of providing support
- Uncover taken for granted assumptions about a person they support or what is possible for them
- Be able to see an issue from different perspectives
- Become more self-aware
- Improve their problem solving skills
Listening
Listening is as important as asking questions and a critical skill for Frontline Practice Leaders. It means paying attention to what is said, how it is said and body language. It requires concentration and effort.
Listening must be:
In this video, Frontline Practice Leaders discuss how they prepare and conduct supervision.
Listening must be:
- Active – giving full attention to the staff member, interpreting what they are saying and checking that you have understood.
- Open – having an ‘open mind’ that suspends any preconceptions or judgement. Being open lets the staff member work through an idea, explore an issue, or explain a problem.
In this video, Frontline Practice Leaders discuss how they prepare and conduct supervision.
Summary
Frontline Practice Leaders need to have regular planned formal supervision with staff and recognise and use opportunities for other types of supervision. Conducting supervision with staff is a skill. It requires asking questions, listening and reflection. Supervision must be focused on staff practice and quality of life.
In the next module we look at the staff team.
In the next module we look at the staff team.