Online clinical pastoral education needs more research

J Health Care Chaplain. 2022 Jul-Sep;28(3):342-349. doi: 10.1080/08854726.2021.1894533. Epub 2021 Mar 15.

Abstract

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic forced many Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) programs to cancel or move online. There is no research about online CPE, and it is unknown how effective it is compared with in-person CPE. Researchers in other related fields have studied online clinical supervision, specifically how technology-assisted supervision affects the supervisory relationship, the development of supervisees' competence and confidence, supervisees' satisfaction, and the overall quality of clinical supervision. This paper presents a review of the scientific evidence about online clinical supervision. It is generally agreed that online clinical supervision is a viable alternative to in-person supervision. More research about online CPE is needed to develop best practices and new accreditation standards that enable CPE supervisors to practice online CPE at the highest level, whether in a pandemic or not.

Keywords: Clinical pastoral education; clinical supervision; online CPE; technology-assisted supervision.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • COVID-19*
  • Clinical Competence
  • Education, Distance*
  • Humans
  • Pandemics