My Philsophy of Supervision

Supervision is a one of my focuses in my career. Systemic family therapy is the grounding for both my clinical practice and supervision. I was privileged to have received the best of East Coast training in systemic based supervision, early in my career.

This preparation and subsequent experience suggests that therapists may not fully assimilate their classroom training in systemic family therapy without clinical supervision. 

Systemic thinking constitutes a true paradigm shift for most students. It’s a shift in perception, interpretation and use of relationships, that requires supervision and modeling with families. Through supervision, the classroom learning gives way to a larger understanding of the patterns of interactions and the narratives that the family may be trapped in.

The supervisor brings a second perspective forming a “double description”, from a systemic paradigm that helps the therapist integrate the classroom experience with his or her experiences of the family system.

The real time model of training such as one-way mirror, video of family sessions and immediate in home, participant-supervision, catalyzes the integration of systemic perceiving and thinking.

This also reflects the transformative effect that supervision contributed to my own  experience as an intern and young therapist in the process of getting my M.F.T. Master’s degree. This continues to influence how I supervise, and my belief in the supervision experience.  My experience in supervision in the Master’s Degree program highlight four supervisory mentors during that period  They were different and yet essentially the same, engaging and devoted to the profession of family therapy and to the supervision process.

I also sought and received consultation on my work through video taped family sessions from, Paul Watzslovich and Carlos Suzki, as well as from the students of Milton Erickson. This gave me a wealth of experience with families and the range of challenge and possibilities for change amidst the complexity of the human condition. This foundation continues to animate my understanding of the forms of supervision, and how central clinical supervision is for development of a generative, courageous and effective clinical practice. 

I had the opportunity to be the clinical supervisor of the Multi Systemic Therapy (MST) research program, based in South Carolina, housed in Oregon. This program provides rigorous supervision for their clinical staff as well as an on-going consultative support for the clinical supervisor. I was fortunate to get the opportunity to learn this method as well as to provide this clinical supervision. I also maintained data collection on the counselor’s and client’s satisfaction, their ability and efficacy with families and their faithfulness to the MST model. Data was also collected on my ability to supervise in the model and to be helpful to my supervisees.

Supervision as I view it, attends to the supervisee’s overall professional development, while providing intensive coaching in individual and family assessment, case formulation and approach, and extensive and frequent observations overseeing their family work.

I continue to grow and learn about context, similarities and differences in the supervisory and in the clinical relationship. The issues of gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, race, socio-economic status, religion/spirituality are always present and must have attention in these relationships.