ACA Policy Professional Supervision

Transcription

1 ACA Policy Professional Supervision For the purpose of understanding Professional or Clinical Supervision in relation to ACA we have generated this article. Much of the content of the article is taken from a workbook on Supervision written by Philip Armstrong, a co-editor of the text book Practice of Clinical Supervision 2010 published by Australian Academic Press. The term counsellor in this document is interchangeable with the term psychotherapist. There is still some confusion as to constitutes the process of Professional/Clinical Supervision and what it encompasses. For the purpose of this document I will refer to this process as Professional Supervision. The following sets out a general framework of what constitutes Professional Supervision and also discusses issues inherent in this process. First I ll discuss what Professional Supervision is not to help clarify any misconceptions. It is not: Someone watching over your shoulder every time you practise in your normal daily setting. A discussion between two practitioners, this if anything is peer supervision; Being supervised whilst on a field placement or completing a course, this is supervised training not professional practice: Discussing personal matters with a counsellor. Supervision is: A formal, generally contractual, arrangement made between a registered Supervisor and a Counsellor. The counsellor uses this process to discuss their counselling work regularly with a registered Supervisor. The process involves working collaboratively to help develop the efficiency of the counsellor/client relationship. Professional supervision is a process to maintain adequate standards of counselling and a method of consultancy to widen the horizons of an experienced practitioner. Counselling exposes counsellors to situations that impose a great demand on practitioners. This demand can lead to becoming enmeshed, over-involved and subjective leading them to being ineffective. Counsellors cannot in all cases be objective about their own abilities, agendas and practices. This is why simply being experienced in relation to have been practicing over many years on its own does not necessarily make a counsellor a better counsellor. A supervisor can be objective and help the counsellor to grow and learn. The supervisor can ensure that the counsellor is meeting the needs of their clients and keeping to ethical and professional standards. Supervisors will also help counsellors relate practice to theory and visa-versa. A Supervisor can act as consistent balance and check mechanism for the counsellor and consumer. Professional Supervision is a contractual agreement made between a Supervisor and a Supervisee (the counsellor or practitioner). The supervision provided is usually a paid-for service for private practitioners and can be included as an employer benefit in an employment contract for counsellors who are employed. What defines an ACA Registered Supervisor? A Supervisor in the context of being an ACA recognised Supervisor must fulfil all of the following criteria: Have completed an ACA accredited or recognised qualification in Supervision Registered or be eligible for membership with ACA at level 3 or 4.

2 A current financially registered ACA Supervisor who met the pre 2012 criteria. Supervisors who meet these criteria must maintain an unbroken registration with ACA. Should a Supervisor under this criterion cease registration and/or membership to ACA then they will be required to meet the post January 2012 criterion for registration as a supervisor. Who needs to have a Professional Supervisor? All ACA registered practising members; How often do you need to have Professional Supervision? The recommended industry standard is one hour of supervision for every 20 hours of client contact time. For example, if you see 20 clients at one hour each over a two-week period you require one hour s supervision per fortnight. Counsellors who work in areas where they are exposed to continued highly intense client groups such as child protection, domestic violence etc. may require more frequent supervision to care for their own mental health. What is the cost? Check the cost of independent Supervisors on the ACA web site under ACA College of Supervisors.. What qualifications does a counsellor need to be registered with ACA as a Supervisor? Completed an ACA accredited course of Supervision. o Qualification gained Post 1 Jan 2012 either a Voc Grad Dip or Grad Dip or Masters of Supervision. o Qualification gained Pre-Jan 2012 & Post Jan 2010 require a minimum of a Certificate level 4 in Professional Supervision. o Qualification gained Pre- Jan 2010 ACA approved course of training in Supervision. Be a current financial member of ACA at level 3 or 4. Who will not be recognised as a ACA Professional Supervisor? Anyone who does not meet the above criteria. Exceptions to the rule: A counsellor who is also a recognised religious leader i.e. Father, Imam, Priest, Rabbi, Sister etc. and counsels members of their Church/Mosque/Synagogue etc. only may due to their religious practice receive supervision from a non-qualified senior religious leader of their faith. It is recommended that counsellors in this situation do seek additional supervision from a registered supervisor. Counsellors within this group who also offer counselling to member outside of their church are required to engage a registered supervisor for this work. Employers may designate someone from the workplace as a Supervisor for an employee

3 (counsellor) that does not meet ACA eligibility criteria. ACA will recognise this supervision as workplace supervision for the member within the context of their employment only. Should the counsellor also practice outside of their employment then an ACA registered supervisor will be required. It is highly recommended that employers provide counsellors with access to external supervision by a registered ACA Supervisor to ensure the counsellor is appropriately supervised for their benefit and that of the employer s clients. What should my Supervision contract cover? Costs per session and any extras eg, STD phone calls; Session times; Amount of sessions per client contact time; Basic framework of sessions; Any journals and signing off procedures; Confidentiality; Duty of Care issues; Procedure for potentially suicidal clients; Reporting procedures including reporting for any occurrences that involve ethical and/or legal issues; Penalties for late cancellations. What should a session consist of? The supervisors primary role is to ensure that the supervisee s clients are receiving appropriate therapeutic counselling and the supervisees own mental health remains healthy. By ensuring the supervisee continually develops their professional practice in all areas, the supervisor ensures a counsellor remains psychologically healthy. The supervisor is also responsible for detecting any symptoms of burn out, transference, hidden agendas etc in the supervisee. The four following topics need to be discussed in sessions as required: Evaluation: Supervisee s counselling; Developing process of self-review; Quality assurance; Best practice; Service outcomes of service delivery; Identifying risk for supervisee and clients; Referrals; Follow up on client progress; Helping the counsellor assess strengths and weaknesses. Education: Establishing clear goals for further sessions; Providing resources; Modelling; Explaining the rationale behind a suggested intervention and visa versa; Professional development; Interpreting significant events in the therapy session; Convergent and divergent thinking;

4 Use of self; Topping up; Facilitating peer connection; Duty of care; Legal responsibilities.

5 Administration: Procedures; Paperwork; Links; Accounting; Case planning; Record keeping; Insurance. Support. Advocate; Challenge; Confront; Empower; Affirm; Availability; Empowering; Use of self. Is supervision mandatory? Yes, if you wish to be a registered practicing counsellor with ACA. Where do I find a Supervisor? ACA registered supervisors can be found on the ACA Supervisor Register which is part of the ACA College of Professional Supervisors. For members in regional and isolated areas ACA understands this can be a real dilemma. Members in isolated or regional areas are encouraged to consider phone and/or internet based supervision, most ACA registered supervisors will offer either or both of these methods. Counsellors who operate in small communities can also be faced with confidentiality issues due to small populations and may find they see their supervisor regularly in a social setting. These factors need to be managed as part of the supervision process so as to not create an obstacle to supervision. Special circumstances: ACA members in Private Practice should always seek to use an ACA registered Supervisor as a first option. Should members not be able to find an appropriate ACA registered supervisor then they may request to use an alternative supervisor who is available and is adequately trained. ACA will consider such requests on an individual basis. Do I have to do face-to-face Supervision? No, as I previously stated it may not be practical due to distance or other issues to seek face to face supervision. Supervision via the phone, Skype, internet or video cam are all acceptable modes of delivery. What are the Supervisor s Responsibilities? The supervisor is responsible for the supervisees practice and mental well-being. Supervisors of

6 ACA counsellors who have complaints made against them may be called by the Head of the Complaints Committee for comment in relation to the complaint. This puts a lot of responsibility onto Supervisors. For those who see supervision as an easy way to make good money, think again. Supervisors may carry the responsibility for their supervisee s actions or be questioned as to why poor practices were not addressed in supervision. A supervisor who has many supervisees carries a lot of responsibility on their shoulders. For each supervisee the supervisor is responsible for the development and practice of the supervisee and indirectly the well-being of their clients, within reason. What are the Counsellor s responsibilities? The supervisee is responsible for being honest in all their disclosures to their supervisor and for carrying through with any work or practices that are agreed upon in a session. Supervisees who pay lip service to supervisors cannot hold their supervisor responsible if things go wrong. It is also the supervisee s responsibility not to carry out any unethical practices that an impaired supervisor may suggest. If a supervisee is in any doubt as to the ethics of a suggested action they can clarify the issue with the CEO of ACA. I was told to by my Supervisor is not a defence in relation to justifying an unethical action. It is the responsibility of both the Supervisee and Supervisor to be familiar with the ACA Code of Conduct and Complaint Procedures (which incorporates procedures for suicidal clients). What is an impaired supervisor? Unfortunately, being a supervisor does not necessarily mean a person is ethical or functional. There have been cases where impaired supervisors have justified improper practices by colluding with supervisees and passing on those improper practices to spawn similar practitioners. By building a group of impaired practitioners the supervisor can justify improper practices and by numbers convince others that it is appropriate. In some ways this is similar to forming a cult. Being a supervisee can put you in a vulnerable situation if a supervisor is charismatic and convincing in relation to justifying unethical practices. If in doubt, seek help from your association or another supervisor. Any supervisor that advises you to breach any part of the code of practice should be reported to the association and another supervisor sought. Of all improper practices conducted by impaired supervisors, sexual exploitation is the most common. Sexual relationships with supervisors, supervisees, current or past clients (within two years of last session) is not acceptable in any circumstance and can lead to legal action and deregistration from professional bodies, even years after the event. This includes relationships between tutors/lecturers and students whilst undertaking a course in counselling. Is there anyone a supervisor should not supervise? A supervisor should not supervise any person with who they have an emotional and/or physical relationship with currently or prior to a contract of supervision, or any member of their immediate family. The reason for this is that in any relationship a power base is established by those involved. This power base is generally functional for the personal relationship and is part of the dynamics for the decision-making processes within the relationship. It would be realistic to expect these dynamics to be carried across into a business/professional relationship, whether consciously or unconsciously. These dynamics would in most cases not be conducive to an objective and equitable relationship between a supervisor and supervisee.

7 Is the Gender of the Supervisor important? Gender can be an issue if it is sort for the wrong reason. Consider some of the following. A woman who has been brought up with an overbearing father may seek approval from a male supervisor. A male who has been brought up with an unemotional father may seek a male supervisor, assuming they will be unemotional as well. A counsellor needs to reflect on why they may have a strong preference for a certain gender. It may be in the counsellor s best interest to challenge any preferences through personal counselling prior to seeking out a particular gender. Counsellors who find they have a preference for a gender due to a previous unpleasant experience may need to consider whether they have dealt with the issue satisfactorily. A female counsellor who has been a victim of domestic violence and therefore seeks out a female supervisor because of power issues with males would need to consider whether they take these issues into their practice. In this scenario the counsellor needs to consider counselling in relation to that issue. A male counsellor who has been brought up by an abusive stepmother may seek a male supervisor so as not to put themselves in the position of being subordinate to a female. Again this counsellor needs to consider their agendas and dealing with the issue. Is gender a consideration for supervisors? Yes, as it is for supervisees. Supervisors may use the supervisor/supervisee relationship to play out unresolved issues. A female supervisor from a feminist background may use position to seek out male supervisees to intentionally influence them to meet her politics. A male supervisor may have traditional ideas as to the roles of the sexes and use the relationship to stall careers of female clients. Female supervisors may over identify with female supervisees emotionally. Male supervisors may encourage male supervisees only to deal cognitively with cases. The conditioning of the supervisor may see them employing tactics to subvert supervisees without being conscious of their agendas. Supervisors need to be aware of the broader issues. There are obviously more considerations and points of discussion that have not been nor is it practical to cover on this site. It is also the counsellors responsibility to research this subject further.