What Should Happen in Supervision?
Some things don’t change much. In my final year of graduate school, I was in an advanced behavioral disorders class (what most students refer to as “the DSM class,” and the professor asked how we were using our time in supervision. Nobody had an answer. A lot of us had supervisors who routinely didn’t even show up. Some colleagues now tell me that their supervisor texts throughout their supervision meetings.
While it can be difficult to be selective about supervision as a practicum student or even an intern in graduate school, post-graduate supervision is where you can finally choose a supervisor—usually. Granted, if you work for an agency, sometimes that means you’re stuck with whoever they match you up with. Even if you work for an agency that provides free supervision, it might be worthwhile to find a group with someone else that you attend occasionally to just get another perspective, especially if you suspect that your supervisor is not providing you to practice on your own.
Components of Good Supervision
A Plan
Every six months, create a plan with your supervisor including what you want to focus on and what they want you to focus on. Make sure that you revisit this plan periodically to make sure you are on track with your professional development. A good plan should include focus on specific counseling skills, documentation, and any work you would like to do to prepare for clinical engagement with special populations or specific issues such as trauma or addiction.
Review of Work Samples
Everyone loves to hate being recorded or observed in any way, but it’s important to get used to it. Many states require that supervisors observe some of their supervisee’s clinical work either by shadowing sessions, listening to an audio recording or watching a video. This is important to get used to because if you seek specialty certifications in the future for REBT or EMDR Certification just to name a couple, it’s often required that your consultant reviews at least a few recordings. It’s important to get into the habit of asking clients for permission to be recorded and knowing that your work will be reviewed.
Advisement and Samples of Good Documentation
Even though most of us fantasize about life without insurance companies, even if you never sign a contract to be an in-network provider with an insurance company, as soon as one client submits a superbill for reimbursement, the insurance company is entitled to review any documentation you have. Plus, if you don’t accept insurance, it’s important to get guidance on things like making sure you opt out of Medicare and provide a Good Faith Estimate to clients for the price transparency required by the No Surprises Act.
Development of Professional Identity
The time after graduate school is when you truly become the therapist you want to be and that involves a lot of self exploration. It’s crucial to have a mentor who is invested in helping you be honest with yourself about which clients and cases resonate the most with you and where you can add the most value. Not only is this important when it comes to the clinical outcomes you will see in your work and your reputation among peers, it will also help you build your practice and avoid burnout.
Self Care Strategies
This includes knowing when to say no to a case, when to draw boundaries with clients or family members, and how much to charge. It’s not just about getting enough sleep, eating well or getting spa services. Our feelings and intuition as healers are our most valuable tools and it often takes another person to remind you of that. If your supervisor is the person at your agency pushing you to take whoever walks through the door and pack your schedule with 30-40 clients per week, you are not receiving adequate support in this ara.
Please share your experiences with supervision so far! Any other thoughts or insights on the supervisor/supervisee relationship are appreciated.
