'Choosing Tuesday': establishing and sustaining regular clinical supervision in advanced nursing practice

Clinical supervision is a valued learning tool for student nurses; however, there is a paucity of description around real-time experience of clinical supervision among qualified advanced nurse practitioners. Many qualified nurses claim delays in engaging with clinical supervision may be caused by staff shortages, time constraints, workload in busy clinical environments, or a reticence to engage in discussions that might reveal shortcomings in knowledge or practical skills. This article reviews a process of monthly clinical supervision that has been conducted among a group of qualified emergency department advanced nurse practitioners for 25 years. Enablers and challenges are identified, as are changes to nursing practices that emerged from the sessions. Many benefits are identified, both for patient care and for nurse satisfaction. These positive aspects appear to sustain a regular clinical supervision process and offset any challenges and pitfalls. Resilience and commitment to the process are paramount to its success.