12 Things Counselors Need to Learn and How Supervisors Can Facilitate Them
Instructor: Dr. Dawn-Elise Snipes, PhD
Executive Director: AllCEUs.com, Counselor Education and Training
Podcast Host: Counselor Toolbox & Happiness Isn’t Brain Surgery
CEUs are available at https://allceus.com/member/cart/index/product/id/514/c/
Objectives
~ Define 12 things counselors need to learn and discuss how supervisors can facilitate them
What Counselors Need to Learn
~ How to attend themselves to the client's feelings, establish rapport, to demonstrate caring, compassion, and empathy
~ How to find a collaborative, instead of combative, metaphor for treatment
~ How to develop and monitor the therapeutic alliance
~ How to marshal and enhance the potential for success through the use of
~ social support networks
~ community services
~ family and community resources
What Counselors Need to Learn
~ How to avoid falling into conventional wisdom that when treatment does not meet the desired outcome it is the client's fault
~ How to promote the client’s sense of personal control and empowerment
~ How to focus on the future and the client's ability to overcome the past
~ How to engage in brief therapy
What Counselors Need to Learn
~ How to establish the affective qualities essential to counseling before launching into diagnostics
~ How to adapt a relationship to different clients and their needs
~ The earlier change happens in treatment the more likely will be a positive outcome
~ How to identify not what the person needs, but what the person already has to work with
How Can Supervisors Help
~ Help is when the mind is present in the heart, when mind, body and spirit are integrated and when an individual is at peace with his mind body and spirit even if one of those elements is experiencing pain or suffering
Supervisors need to
~ Offer mystery, compassion, openness, and a simple presence instead of answers or being the expert
~ Learn contemplative listening which means
~ Being receptive to visual, auditory, kinesthetic and intuitive cues
~ Without an agenda
~ Without a compulsion to help
~ The most important phrases a supervisor can learn are “I don't know” and “I could be wrong”
Establishing Supervisory Relationships
~ Creating a contract involving mutually defined goals for both parties that allow for realistic accountability
~ Establishing a working relationship which includes laying groundwork of trust and respect
~ Assessing the counselor's clinical knowledge and skills and training needs using standardized instruments, transcripts and other methods of observation
~ Setting learning goals for the supervision and a form of supervision training plan
Goals of Supervision should be
~ Clearly stated, attainable, specific, measurable and observable
~ In writing (individual development plan, IDP) and agreed upon by the supervisor and supervisee
~ Contain specific action steps to bring about the outcome
~ Contain specific procedures to evaluate the outcome
Individual Development Plans
~ Include the following
~ Expectations for supervision including
~ the model of therapy
~ the number and types of patient to be seen
~ the number and duration of supervision sessions
~ the techniques and interventions to be used
~ The counselor's experience and readiness for the position including
~ the counselor's base of knowledge
~ his or her strengths and areas for growth
IDPs cont…
~ Procedures to be used to observe the counselor and practice
~ Procedures to be used to determine the counselor's reasoning, conceptualization, and decision-making skills
~ Procedures to be used to evaluate the counselor
~ Procedures to be used to intervene to help the counselor achieve supervision goals
Assess the Learning Environment
~ Questions
~ Is there sufficient challenge in the learning environment to keep the supervisee motivated
~ Is the theoretical or philosophical dissonance between supervisor and supervisee manageable
~ Does the supervisee have the necessary knowledge and skills to begin this process
~ Does the supervisee have sufficient personal development self-esteem and sense of self-worth to progress
~ What is the supervisee's investment in the learning process
Learning Environment Cont…
~ Does the supervisee possess the basic and affective qualities needed for counseling such as empathy warmth and genuineness
~ Is the amount of support available to the supervisee sufficient and proportional to the challenge
~ Are the goals and means of supervision clear and understood by all parties
Learning Environment Cont…
~ Are the evaluation criteria realistic, measurable, attainable, accurate, relevant and clearly understood
~ To what extent can the supervisee process feedback
~ Is the supervisory environment conducive to risk taking
~ To what extent is the supervisor able to help the supervisee integrate new techniques and skills
~ Is there a basis for terminating the supervision at the appropriate time
Discussion
~ It is our duty to ensure counselors remaining in the field are competent with regard to
~ Personal characteristics
~ Philosophical foundations
~ Communication abilities
~ Counseling skills
~ Administrative skills
~ Ethical behaviors
For each of the above, identify 3 competencies in each area, how you would assess them and ways you can help supervisees enhance them.
Summary
~ Counselors need to learn:
– Basic counseling skills
– A collaborative, instead of combative, metaphor for treatment
– A process for developing and monitoring the therapeutic alliance
– Tools for enhancing success through the use of resources
– A method avoid falling into conventional wisdom blaming the client for failures
– Strategies to promote the client’s sense personal empowerment
Summary
~ Counselors need to learn:
– Ways to focus on the future and the client's ability to overcome the past
– Brief therapy rationale and techniques
– Establishing rapport before analysis
– Strategies to adapt the relationship to different clients and their needs
– The earlier change happens in treatment the more likely will be a positive outcome
– How to identify not what the person needs, but what the person already has to work with