The effects of clinical supervision on supervisees and patients in cognitive-behavioral therapy: a study protocol for a systematic review

Abstract

BackgroundClinical supervision by a senior therapist is a very common practice in psychotherapist training and psychiatric care settings. Though clinical supervision is advocated by most educational and governing institutions, the effects of clinical supervision on the supervisees’ competence, e.g., attitudes, behaviors, and skills, as well as on treatment outcomes and other patient variables are debated and largely unknown. Evidence-based practice is advocated in clinical settings but has not yet been fully implemented in educational or clinical training settings. The aim of this systematic review is to synthesize and present the empirical literature regarding effects of clinical supervision in cognitive-behavioral therapy.MethodsThis study will include a systematic review of the literature to identify studies that have empirically investigated the effects of supervision on supervised psychotherapists and/or the supervisees’ patients. A comprehensive search strategy will be conducted to identify published controlled studies indexed in the MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, and Cochrane Library databases. Data on supervision outcomes in both psychotherapists and their patients will be extracted, synthesized, and reported. Risk of bias and quality of the included studies will be assessed systematically.DiscussionThis systematic review will rigorously follow established guidelines for systematic reviews in order to summarize and present the evidence base for clinical supervision in cognitive-behavioral therapy and may aid further research and discussion in this area.Systematic review registrationPROSPERO CRD42016046834 Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13643-017-0486-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Positive Experience and Challenges in Learning and Delivering Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Among Psychiatric Nurses of Hong Kong

“…The lack of supervised practice is another challenge. Psychotherapy supervision is defined as a setting in which one psychotherapist instructs and provides training in psychotherapy theories, methods, and skills to psychotherapists while they are treating patients (Alfonsson et al, 2017). In the clinical view, psychiatric nurses do not require CBT supervision because they do not need to implement CBT.…”

The Analysis of the Phenomenon of Reflexivity in Psychotherapy Supervision: A Systematic Literature Review

“…Dialoginiai santykiai supervizijoje ypač akcentuojami egzistencinėje, geštaltinėje, taip pat psichoanalitinėje bei psichodinaminėje paradigmose. O štai kognityvinėje -bihevioristinėje paradigmoje galimas ir "Aš-Tai" santykis, nes kognityvinės -bihevioristinės supervizijos dėmesio centre yra supervizuojamojo mokymas įvairių terapinių technikų ir intervencijų, namų darbų atlikimas ir jų aptarimas supervizijos sesijos metu (Alfonsson et al, 2017;Falender & Shafranske, 2004;Fedoriaka, 2017).…”

CBT supervision behind closed doors: Supervisor and supervisee reflections on their expectations and use of clinical supervision

“…Little is known about how CBT supervision is routinely delivered, monitored or experienced and, given the strong tradition of promoting adherence to research in the field, it is concerning that what little data there are suggests that everyday practices do not always mirror expert recommendations (e.g., Alfonsson et al, 2017; Milne et al, 2009; Townend et al, 2002; Simpson‐Southward et al, 2018; Weck et al, 2017), with key normative, formative and restorative functions often being omitted (Proctor, 1994; Pugh & Margetts, 2020). For example, a study by Weck et al (2017) found that the most widely used method in supervision was case discussion, with limited opportunities to give feedback on the quality of supervisees' clinical work (e.g., video footage of therapy sessions).…”