The research group focuses on advancing understanding of learning, supervision, and performances in complex clinical environments. Situated at the intersection of medical education, clinical practice, and organizational learning, the group explores how healthcare professionals develop expertise while ensuring patient safety in high-stakes settings such as surgery, intensive care, and acute care.

A central research theme is clinical supervision, with particular attention to how supervisors support trainee development through graded autonomy, guided struggle, and learning from error. The group studies how moments of difficulty, uncertainty, and failure—when appropriately managed—can become powerful drivers of learning, professional growth, and adaptive expertise. Using predominantly qualitative and mixed-methods approaches, the group investigates supervisory decision-making processes, trainee–supervisor interactions, and contextual factors that shape learning opportunities in everyday clinical work.

Another major focus is the study of failure in healthcare, including phenomena such as allowed failure, struggle during clinical performance, and failure to rescue. These projects aim to deepen understanding of how individual, team-based, and organizational factors influence both clinical outcomes and learning processes. Research in this area seeks to inform strategies that balance patient safety with meaningful experiential learning.

The group also investigates learner-centered education and professional identity formation, particularly in contexts of disruption and change. This includes research on learning and well-being during crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic, interprofessional collaboration, and the experiences of medical students and residents working at the clinical frontline.

Across all projects, the research group emphasizes collaboration with clinicians, educators, and international partners. The overarching goal is to generate empirically grounded insights that inform educational design, supervision practices, and organizational policies, ultimately contributing to high-quality patient care and sustainable professional development in healthcare systems.

[FG] Klasen Jennifer

Head of Research Unit

PD Dr. med. Dr. phil. Jennifer Margaretha Klasen

Projects & Collaborations