What is Clinical Supervision in Mental Health Counseling?
By Shannon Heers
Clinical supervision in mental health counseling is the practice of a less experienced mental health professional, the supervisee, getting clinical support and oversight from a more experienced professional, the supervisor. The primary goal of clinical supervision is for the supervisee to improve their quality of client care and to promote their professional development.
There are several key features of clinical supervision in the counseling field. The concept of counselors who are newer to the field, learning from those more experienced clinicians, is one thing that separates the counseling profession from others. Also found in social work, clinical supervision is essential and even required for newer counselors to become independently licensed to practice on their own.
This article looks at the top components of clinical supervision and how they are helpful to supervisees.
Skill Development
There is an endless supply of skills to be learned as a mental health counselor. After learning skills, it is important to learn how to apply and even refine those skills. This can include not just specific skills but also new therapeutic techniques, solidifying the therapeutic relationship, honing assessment abilities, and implementing different intervention strategies.
With so many different theoretical orientations and modalities to choose from, it really is essential that supervisees have a more experienced guide to help them match their chosen therapeutic style with their personality and beliefs about treatment and healing.
Case Review
One of the more traditional aspects of clinical supervision is the review and discussion of clinical cases, also called case consultation. This ensures that the supervisee is providing effective and ethical services. It also provides the opportunity to explore different perspectives on cases, and consider alternative interventions.
Case consultation can be a time to fully explore all the complexities of a clinical presentation. There is no one “right” or “wrong” answer about how to proceed with a case, unless, of course, urgent or emergent situations arise. Having clinical oversight on supervisees’ cases helps protect the client as well as the supervisee.
Reflective Practices
Self-reflection is a big part of the learning process for mental health counselors. Clinical supervision can incorporate reflection or encourage this outside of supervision sessions. Every counselor is different, and has different values, backgrounds, and belief systems. Having a reflective practice can encourage exploring one’s personal reactions to clients and situations.
This type of self-awareness also supports professional growth and development. Reflecting on ethical dilemmas, or challenging cases, and how the supervisee reacted can further the professional learning. Lack of self-insight from a supervisee is a red flag in the counseling field. Counseling is all about change, and how people change and heal. If you cannot change and grow yourself, it’s unlikely that your clients will be able to either.
Feedback and Evaluation
In order to improve, supervisees need to get constructive feedback from their supervisors. Self-reflection can only take a supervisee so far. Getting quality feedback from a trusted clinical supervisor is essential for supervisees to develop a professional identity. It also helps to identify potential ethical pitfalls and ensures legal compliance.
Evaluation is helpful to identify supervisees’ areas of strength, as well as highlighting areas of improvement. Because there is so much to learn and adhere to in the mental health counseling field, clinical supervision is the safety net for those professionals newly entering the field. Evaluation, and subsequent feedback, is crucial for ongoing skill development in supervisees.
Support and Well-being
Learning new skills, and using oneself as the instrument through which counseling occurs, can take a toll. Supervision provides emotional support and balance while normalizing the psychological cost of being a counselor. Having a clinical supervisor to talk to and get support from helps to manage the challenges of the field.
Many, if not most, counselors experience symptoms of burnout sometime during their career. Having a trusted clinical supervisor who knows you well, can help identify the early signs of burnout so you can make a self-care plan to overcome it. Incorporating regular self-care into a counselor’s work will help with longevity as a mental health professional.
Professional Development:
One aspect of clinical supervision is setting professional development goals. Identifying which areas you want to focus on, and grow in, and creating a plan to reach those goals, is something that clinical supervisors help with.
You may want to pursue specialized training in one or more areas of treatment, or learn different clinical modalities. Attending workshops, pursuing certification trainings or doing other activities to increase your competence are helpful. Learning how to apply the information that you learn is one way to utilize clinical supervision.
Legal and Ethical Compliance
Practicing within your jurisdiction’s legal regulations and your license type’s ethical codes are something that every counselor needs to abide by. Ensuring that counselors are both aware of and adhere to the ethical and legal standards is an essential part of clinical supervision. This is crucial for professional integrity, as well as ensuring the welfare of the client.
Types of Clinical Supervision in Mental Health Counseling
The structure and format of clinical supervision can vary, depending on your location and jurisdiction’s rules and regulations. Supervision can be individual, triadic, or in group formats. Face-to-face supervision, tele-supervision, direct observation, rounds, and co-facilitation are different ways that clinical supervision can happen.
State and country regulatory bodies create the guidelines for clinical supervision requirements for mental health counselors to get and maintain their licensure. Make sure you check your local requirements before engaging in counseling practice, to keep within the legal and ethical standards of counseling.
How we can help
If you’re looking for support and clinical consultation around your clinical work, check out our Clinical Consultation Community, where you can develop professionally within a community of other private practice therapists, just like yourself.
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.
