by SuperGoose » Sun Dec 13, 2020 6:35 pm
The way it works in Ireland and the UK is you go to someone who has a qualification in supervision and you have a conversation with them to see if you click, then you go see them every 20 sessions or so and talk anonymously about your clients with them (the clients are told about this during contracting so that if they can consent) . They are there to support you, encourage you, guide you, offer another perspective, explore your own feelings about the work with you, and most importantly to make sure you are working ethically and within your competency. It stays obligatory even if you have been counselling for 50 years and have a PHD
In the US supervision is optional and therapists usually get it only when they are working with a new client group or issue they haven't worked with before, then they specifically find a supervisor who is experienced in that. But it's the same thing, you try to find someone locally who is a qualified supervisor and then you meet with them (as if you were looking for a new therapist) to see if you are on the same page and then you contract to work together.
Group supervision can be really formal or informal, can include a qualified supervisor or not, however you want to work it with the group when it's set up. What matters is that you contract that everything is confidential and client anonymity is upheld at all times, and that of course you mention both your supervision and group supervision when contracting with new clients. Counselling placements and organizations often have their own supervision groups with qualified supervisors, you pay a fee in this case to pay the supervisor's wage. If there's no supervision groups in your area you can contact other students and set one up yourselves, just make sure you carefully contract in the first meeting so everyone understands the rules and can suggest extra ones.