Although they overlap, supervision is different to formal debriefing, critical incident management and day-to-day management interactions. These need their own policies and procedures.
Performance management is also separate to supervision but, through early recognition and support, supervision can prevent performance concerns growing.
Supervisors need to use empathy and counselling skills during supervision. How much will depend on the situation and supervisee. The line between supervision and counselling is fluid. It reflects supervisees bringing their ‘whole selves’ to the work. Personal experiences can support the work. Deep reflection during supervision provides opportunities to:
- unpack personal experiences that affect practice and vice versa
- allow supervisees to feel supported and maybe seek ongoing external help if required, through EAP or therapy
- monitor the safety and wellbeing of supervisees, their levels of vicarious trauma and possible burnout.[1]
Develop a supervision agreement early in the relationship. This is an opportunity to discuss the fluid nature of supervision and normalise the potential need for EAP or a therapeutic response.
‘One of our practitioners wasn’t sure why a particular client triggered her. We were able to talk it through in the moment and when we unpacked it, it went right back to her early years. Providing space for in-the-moment supervision meant that she was able to make that link. I then referred her to the EAP, so she had the opportunity to explore it further through ongoing therapeutic work with someone else.’
— Kelly Gannon, Team Leader, Winda-Mara Aboriginal Corporation
References
[1] Hewson and Carroll, Reflective practice in supervision.
Updated