Best supervision practices

[PsychPhDone]

---

Members don't see this ad.

Thinking specifically in terms of clinical supervision of doctoral students, but I'm open to whatever: as a trainee, what's the most helpful thing a supervisor ever has ever done for you? As a supervisor, what's your number one tip for new supervisors?

 

[jdawg2017]

This might sound really simple, but as a (neuropsych) trainee, I really value the supervisors who have taken the time to explain the "why" behind some more idiosyncratic differences, such as report-writing and feedback styles. Ultimately, I think when I have had supervisors who can explain why they do things the way that they do, it helps me in the development toward my own eventual report and feedback styles that'll feel right for me.

This should also go without saying, but at one of my pracs, I felt more like a testing robot and was not challenged a lot on my thinking of why to administer X test, what Y result could mean, etc. I appreciate supervisors who will push and play devil's advocate, even if they may agree with your initial thinking. My current prac supervisor does this a lot, and I am sure it is going to be a huge asset for when I go off to internship, post-doc, and eventually sit for boards. This may be something that becomes more appropriate for more advanced trainees (i.e., folks who have done 1+ practica) versus new trainees, but I think there are probably ways to do this at all stages.

 

[summerbabe]

Broadly speaking, have and continue to develop awareness of your tendencies and strengths/weaknesses as a clinician and make sure to incorporate that which is unnatural and potentially challenging into your supervision.

For example, if you are more technical and analytical in your approach to this field and therapy, make sure you are also intentional about being validating and supportive to your trainees in ways that are appropriate to their development. If we are asking our trainees to try uncomfortable/unnatural things that promote their personal growth and provide their patients the best possible care, we should hold ourselves to a similar standard.

I also value supervisors who are attentive to the current developmental needs of their supervises. Much like how we should collaborate with patients to identify shared goals and ways to reach these goals, I hope that supervisors are doing the same while also making sure to attend to topics that supervises may not be as aware of but are likely relevant at each developmental levels.

Specifically, most helpful for me during grad school was being given feedback on my general style and therapy tendencies via video recording review. It helped me to better understand my strengths, areas for improvement, and my default tendencies (good and bad).

And combined with simple advice (e.g., slow down and let clients try to work out connections on their own rather than jumping the gun and filling in the blanks for them), it helped me to figure out how to be more measured and intentional by doing more with less.

 

[BuckeyeLove]

A bit of tough love. And what I mean by that is...when it was clear I was being lazy (i.e., conclusory statements, cutting corners, etc), calling me out on it but then showing me the right way and why it's necessary. The best feedback ever for me was always "This doesn't make sense" and then showing me why and how to address it. Ego strength helps with this.

 

[WisNeuro]

One of the best things in neuro that I have doen with trainees is have them look into the data behind some of the clinical lore issues (e.g., intellectual functioning should be uniform within individual, memory and IF should be the same, etc). Also, getting a good understanding of biostats, that helps in all of psych. Making sure what we're doing is supported, and not just because "it sounds good."

 

[iliketohelppeople]

I think one of the best things I have seen a supervisor do is admit to a big mistake at the beginning of the year - that, combined with her warm and compassionate disposition, let me know that she was someone safe to go to even if I made a mistake. I was a bit further along in my training at this point, but it was something that I thought would be really good for trainees early on - you want to make sure that they feel safe to come to you with issues (ideally, so you can fix them before they are actual issues).

 

[ClinicalABA]

Clinically, I really appreciate supervisors who encouraged, taught, and reinforced the use of empirically supported procedures. I liked the "you can try that, but first I need you to find, read, and report on the research evidence" approach.

I am probably most appreciative of the supervisors (mainly in community-based practicum) who took the time to expose me to the non-clinical aspects of the profession. Things like billing and practice management; practical issues like types of office leases and insurance. Instruction on particular regulations- not just clinical, but things like applicable employment law. Also consultation skills and contract procurement. I guess I was pretty fortunate to have these practicum supervisors. While I some great faculty with amazing clinical and research abilities and knowledge, the vast majority had been faculty for their entire careers, and most had been tenured for at least a decade, with no experiences with things like billing insurance, marketing, etc.

 

[Mama Bear]

I think one of the best things I have seen a supervisor do is admit to a big mistake at the beginning of the year - that, combined with her warm and compassionate disposition, let me know that she was someone safe to go to even if I made a mistake. I was a bit further along in my training at this point, but it was something that I thought would be really good for trainees early on - you want to make sure that they feel safe to come to you with issues (ideally, so you can fix them before they are actual issues).

I like this idea. I agree with creating a sense of safety in the supervisory relationship, so it is interesting to see a concrete way this was done.