Tips for GP Supervisors from the GP Supervisor Alumni

This is the first in what we hope is a regular series of articles from very experienced past or present GP supervisors.This article is particularly aimed at new or recent GP supervisors and is written by Dr Gerard Connors, retired GP Supervisor and a former Chair of GPSA.

My best tip is to read the Supervisor Guide developed around your learner’s needs by your College or University. These are not long documents and should be read in full, ideally by all supervisors but at the very least by the nominated (principal) supervisor for each registrar or student. Practice managers should also be acquainted with their relevant sections or separate material.

Most of you would be aware that GPSA also has a wealth of resources in the form of webinars, an extensive repository of Practice and Supervisor resources, the Consultation! board game as well as GPSA apps that allow you to teach simulated patient scenarios and stay connected with the GPSA community (very useful for the new/inexperienced supervisor). Spend some time exploring these resources. 

For those setting up their practice for a student or trainee for the first time, or wanting to take stock and better prepare for the training semester ahead, the General Practice Clinical Learning Environment (GPCLE) is a GPSA initiative designed to guide existing teaching practices and support new supervisors with the facilitation of practical high-quality clinical learning in the GP setting.

The GPCLE has 6 key elements:

1. The Practice values learning

2. Best Practice clinical care

3. A positive learning environment

4. An effective general practice-training provider relationship

5. Effective communication processes

6. Appropriate resources and facilities

While the GPSA team continues to develop the GPCLE tool as a quality improvement mechanism co-designed with GPSA members throughout 2023-24, this framework from 2020 explains how to implement the best-practice principles of the GPCLE in your practice. For new practices and those wanting to improve their clinical learning environments, your training provider’s Supervisor Guide will complement the GPCLE. 

All supervisors and other GP’s, practice staff, nurses and any allied health workers in the practice should be actively involved in making the whole practice a welcoming, high-quality clinical learning environment. 

Don’t forget to download the GPSA Community app to get answers to the many questions you have when you start supervising. 

Gerard Connors

Retired GP Supervisor