Practicum

[justanothergradstudent9]

---

Members don't see this ad.

Hello, I was hoping someone could give me insight on something odd that occurred at practicum this week. I work at a psychiatric state hospital, my supervisor is obviously a psychologist, but there is a psychiatrist who often comes into my office to talk about mostly just personal stuff but sometimes about clients (how I think their mood is that day, sometimes I ask her if a client had a medication change due to progress or regression, etc.). She did give me a gift card for $15 out of the blue, but she did it in front of my supervisor and my supervisor didn't say anything about it. Fast forward to the present... I took off four weeks for internship interviews and this psychiatrist came into my office to see how they went and I had an appointment so I told her we could catch up at the end of the day. At the end of the day, I was in my supervisor's office and she popped in and I told her sorry I could catch up on Tuesday. My supervisor asked me what that was about and I told her that she just wanted to catch up since I've been gone. 20 minutes later my supervisor comes into my office, shuts the door, and says we need to talk. I thought I did something wrong. She then tells me to not talk to the psychiatrist anymore because it is triangulation. I asked her what I do when she just sits down across from me since we've been doing this since August and it would be hard to stop without telling her why... she told me not to tell her why to just blow her off and say that I'm busy and if she pressed it to say something like "Dr. X (my supervisor) isn't busy, go chat with her." I apologized and told her I didn't realize it was wrong to consult and/or chat with her since I am a part of the treatment team. She said it's not my fault and she knows I didn't initiate the relationship. She said if I was a staff member it would be different but I'm a student and the psychiatrist has the power. However, I don't think it is power she is worried about because this psychiatrist is so laid back, constantly says they should hire me, etc. I don't see her ever using her power to get me in trouble or to use me in any way... Am I missing something here? Is this a power struggle between my supervisor and the psychiatrist? If the psychiatrist is truly in the wrong, why can't my supervisor address the issue with her instead of triangulating me further? I am just shocked because I am in a Consultation class and everyone talks about how they chat with the staff at their practicum sites every day and refer to it as consultation/collaboration experience. I have also been in similar relationships at all of my previous practicum sites. There are no decisions the psychiatrist and I make together, so I don't understand where the concern truly lies. I tried to ask more about it but she kept saying triangulation and power differential. She wouldn't explain further. Also, I only have 11 weeks left at this site and then I'm gone forever. Anyways, I was just hoping someone could enlighten me on why the psychiatrist is wrong to chat with me. All the psychiatrist ever tells my supervisor is how amazing of a therapist I am and doesn't understand why I can't stay there for internship (she doesn't understand the APA process). If she were complaining about my performance, that would make more sense because that's up to my supervisor to evaluate. Sorry for the long post, I created this account because this seems like the only place to get this kind of honesty and expert opinion from! I am going to ask my advisor when I go to campus next week but it has been burning on my mind. Thank you.

 

[AbnormalPsych]

Am I missing something here?

Yes, most definitely.

Also, I only have 11 weeks left at this site and then I'm gone forever.

This is a tough situation. Try to think long term. Keep your head down, follow what your supervisor asks of you, and just get through these next 11 weeks. It is not ideal, but solving this may not be entirely worth it since you are leaving soon. There may also be hard feelings, etc. If you really think something needs to change, addressing this situation in private with your DCT or mentors outside of this place is probably a good start.

 

[Justanothergrad]

1. I was so confused by this thread- I thought 'did I post that' for a fleeting second.

2. Yes, you're missing something but I wont speculate as to what. This is an odd dynamic from your description. If there is a legit concern she should clear explain it, but that's not the point. Keep your head down to play it safe- you're almost done. Keep odd behaviors like this in mind when you think about who to ask for references. I dont trust people with odd or unexplained behaviors as a rule.

 

[justanothergradstudent9]

1. I was so confused by this thread- I thought 'did I post that' for a fleeting second.

2. Yes, you're missing something but I wont speculate as to what. This is an odd dynamic from your description. If there is a legit concern she should clear explain it, but that's not the point. Keep your head down to play it safe- you're almost done. Keep odd behaviors like this in mind when you think about who to ask for references. I dont trust people with odd or unexplained behaviors as a rule.

Haha sorry about that! She already wrote me a letter for internship but I'm guessing it was fine because I received interviews. I just wanted to know if this is something I should avoid in the future, but if others think it's odd then there probably was nothing wrong with the relationship to begin with.

 

[Unipsychler]

Are you male or female? This may or not be relevant. I'm curious because your supervisor cited power differentials a couple times, and there sometimes are different thresholds for what's considered an "inappropriate" professional relationship, based on whether there'd be a potential for romantic/sexual exploitation. This wouldn't mean that there IS a problem, just that people can be extra cautious about these things.

The only other thing I can think of is that there may be some kind of professional dynamic between the psychiatrist and your supervisor that has caused issues in the past, and which your supervisor is trying to keep you out of. I can't imagine what "triangulation" would mean in this scenario, maybe the psychiatrist has undermined some of your supervisor's mentorship, or flexed power by getting trainees on their side? But in any case I think it is not wise for you to try to tease it out. Your supervisor said that it's not your fault, so like everyone else says just keep your head down and finish out your year. Making an issue of this can only get in your own way.