Clinical Consultation for Private Practice Therapists: How it Works
By Shannon Heers
Many private practice therapists transition from agency work into providing professional counseling and therapy on their own. Whether you have a history of working in community mental health, hospitals, group practices, or other agency settings, private practice is different. While it’s not for everyone, those who choose private practice do so for the schedule flexibility, ability to choose what clients you work with, and even to escape organizational challenges.
One of the things that sets private practice therapists apart is that you are now working on your own, without a built-in team of collaborators around you. And that can be hard, especially when you want to bounce ideas off of someone, or consult with a colleague on a case. What makes sense to do in these situations is to seek out your own clinical consultation.
Clinical consultation is the official term for clinical supervision once you become independently licensed as a counselor, social worker, therapist, or psychologist. Many if not most states and jurisdictions encourage ongoing clinical consultation for your work, but many private practice therapists do not engage in this. Why not? Many reasons, including:
- Cost of clinical consultation
- Time needed for consultations
- Lack of options for consultation
- The mindset that once you become licensed, you no longer need supervision
And maybe other reasons, or all of the above. However, clinical consultation is an important part of your ongoing professional development and can be integral for your success as a private practice therapist.
Identify if You Could Benefit from Clinical Consultation
Your first step to seeking clinical consultation is to determine whether you can benefit from it. And in what areas you are most in need of support and guidance. Perhaps you have very strong skills in trauma treatment but want to brush up on your CBT skills. Or maybe you are just adding a new clinical specialization, like couples counseling, to your toolbox and you’re looking for support in implementing your formal training.
Many private practice therapists might not even know what type of consultation they want. However, they do know they want a “safety-net” of a clinical supervisor or group of colleagues to ask when they have challenging cases or an ethical dilemma. That is ok too! Just knowing that you have someone to count on when unexpected things arise, can make you feel more supported and less isolated.
Different Types of Clinical Consultation
Once you’ve identified that you want to engage in ongoing clinical consultation as a private practice therapist, what next? There is no one “right” way to get your consultation needs met. Here are some popular types of clinical consultation for private practice therapists:
Individual Clinical Consultation:
This type of consultation is perhaps the easiest to seek out. All it involves is doing individual consultation sessions with a clinical supervisor who specializes in the areas that you want to grow professionally. If you are looking for DBT consultation, you can work with a trained DBT clinical supervisor. You can meet as often as you desire, although I would personally recommend once to twice a month if you are really looking to advance your skills.
Group Clinical Consultation:
Another popular format for obtaining clinical consultation is within a group. Typically this looks like having an experienced clinical supervisor facilitate the group. In a clinical consultation group, the group members are your peers who are at a similar level of development, or who all have one particular clinical specialization or theoretical orientation in common.
Peer Consultation:
Peer consultation and group consultation are terms that can be used interchangeably, or peer consultation can be made up of 100% peer group members with no identified group facilitator or supervisor. Peer consultation groups without a group leader/supervisor may rotate facilitation and timekeeping duties amongst its members.
One-time Only Clinical Consultation:
If you are just looking for a brief clinical consultation with an expert clinician or supervisor, seeking out a 1x only session is also an option. You may use this option to discuss one particularly challenging case, or to try out different clinical supervisors to see who might be the best fit working with you. You could even do this to learn more about an area or modality of treatment that you are interested in, but aren’t sure you want to invest the time and money to specialize in.
Of note, just like therapy, clinical consultation works best if it is ongoing. There is much written and researched about the effect of the therapeutic relationship on client outcomes. Similarly, the supervisory relationship between therapist and clinical supervisor is of utmost importance for ongoing learning and professional development to occur.
Of course, you can do a combination of the above types of clinical consultation, too. Read on for some additional things to consider as you seek out clinical consultation.
Additional Factors to Consider with Clinical Consultation
There are other things for you to think about before you reach out for clinical consultation. Listed below are a few additional options for you to consider:
In-person or Virtual Consultation:
Would you prefer doing in-person consultation, whether individual or group, or is online clinical consultation an option? There are pros and cons to each, and each therapist may have a different preference depending on how you learn best, where you are geographically located, and what your schedule looks like.
In-person consultation works best with therapists that learn and absorb information best face-to-face. And, it can be difficult to find a clinical supervisor or group that fits your needs, that are located close enough to your home or office, to commit to attending regularly. Conversely, you can also meet at different places including libraries, coffee shops, or rotate the location at different group members’ offices.
Online clinical consultation done virtually works best with therapists who may be isolated geographically or live in rural areas, or even places with heavy traffic that may take 30 minutes to travel a few miles away. Virtual consultation can be fit in during your lunch break, or in between clinical sessions. You have more options of clinical supervisors or consultation groups, because you aren’t limited by location.
Cost Investment:
I’m sure you’ve heard the motto “you get what you pay for”. And while this isn’t always the case, I do believe this is true regarding clinical consultation. Of course, it would be totally awesome if your clinical consultation was free, and you got what you needed from it. More realistically, you may have to invest money in your professional development for it to get you the results that you are looking for.
It is also true that when you are starting in private practice or have a slim profit margin (as do most practitioners), that it is really hard to invest your hard-earned money into something as nebulous as clinical consultation. So do what you can afford, and see what results you get for yourself. If a free peer consultation group is what your budget allows, check it out! Give yourself a few months to see if this is what you were expecting or hoping for.
It also helps to look at what your Return on Investment (ROI) is regarding your clinical consultation. If you spend $75 per month for a monthly clinical consultation group, and because of the connections you made with other group members you generated 2 new full-fee referrals that stay with you an average of 6 months, then is the $75/month worth it? Probably.
Or if you meet monthly with an individual clinical supervisor and you learn additional skills that help you retain your clients 2-4 months longer than your average retention, is that investment worth it? Again, it probably is.
How to Seek Out Clinical Consultation
Now that you know what you want and how you want to receive clinical consultation, it’s time to get started! Check out your own professional network first, to see if anyone in there might be an ideal clinical supervisor or be part of a consultation group or peer group that may have an opening.
Looking at experienced clinical supervisors, who have specific experience not only in the clinical specialization area that you are seeking but also in providing clinical supervision, is something to consider. A great therapist does not always make a great clinical supervisor.
If you’re in the market for virtual group consultation or individual consultation, or a combination of both, check out Firelight Supervision’s Clinical Consultation Community. We offer additional benefits of getting clinical consultation with our trained and experienced clinical supervisors, including access to drop-in supervision sessions for urgent cases, a monthly clinical training, our Clinical Resource Library, and more.
Hopefully, I’ve convinced you that, as a private practice therapist, getting clinical consultation can only benefit you and further your professional development. Clinical consultation can also help with having trusted resources when you have those urgent and/or emergent cases, which happens to all of us at some point. As an advanced-level therapist who has been in private practice for 10 years, I still get my own clinical consultation. The learning doesn’t ever stop.
How we can help
If you are located in Colorado or Washington, we provide clinical supervision for mental health counselors. Our trained and experienced clinical supervisors can provide you with individual supervision or group supervision, based on your clinical areas of interest.
You can also sign up for a free phone consultation to discuss options and learn more about us!
Author Bio
Shannon Heers is a psychotherapist, approved clinical supervisor, guest blogger, and the owner of a group psychotherapy practice in the Denver area. Shannon helps adults in professional careers manage anxiety, depression, work-life balance, and grief and loss. Follow Firelight Supervision on Instagram and Facebook.
