Positioning Myself in the Conversation My own experience of receiving supervision, or not receiving it Clinical Director-ASYR 1992-2008: from 4 staff
{"Image DocumentName": "Positioning Myself in the Conversation", "Image ImageDescription": "My own experience of receiving supervision, or not receiving it. Clinical Director-ASYR : from 4 staff to 4 teams. Supervisor in private practice since 1996 including the supervision of: - Individual therapists or a group of therapists working towards Clinical Membership or Approved Supervisor Status with AAMFT. Social Workers in the Ministry of Long-term Care and a Family Health Team. Peer Support Counsellors in the Ministries of Labour and Natural Resources. Students in a 4th Year Practicum Course in Family Relations and Human Development. Very proud of my profession for recognizing the significance of supervision in our field. I have had I\u2019ve had six official clinical supervisors in my career. The very first was a 37 year old woman who died two year into our relationship from breast cancer. When we told that news on the morning of her death I cried. My new supervisor told me later that that was very unprofessional. I knew in that moment, that my new supervisor was never going to compare with my first. He hadn\u2019t for one moment considered me as a person separate to my professional role as a medical psychiatric social worker. He wasn\u2019t curious at all as to why I might have taken the news that emotionally, what personal history I might have brought to that moment when we were told that a young, very kind and compassionate young woman had died. If he had, I would have told him of the many young clients I had had that year as a novice social worker, who had also died of cancer much too soon. I would have also have told him that my mother had cancer when I was 15 and wasn\u2019t expected to live but because of a new trial surgery, had. I would have also told him that a year later, my 43 year old father had died of cancer and left my 6 year old sister, my young mother and myself alone in a new country with no family to speak of. I would have told him all that but he didn\u2019t ask. He taught me the absolute paramount importance of reflective person of the therapist, use of self in supervision for those who are in the caring profession. He did not reflect on his own issues or those of his supervisees, preferring an expert, directive, teacher stance which has its purpose but needs to be balanced with curiosity, understanding and acceptance that we all come with our stories. I would like to dedicate our conversation to my first supervisor Gaye who taught me that reflection and honouring the Person of the Therapist are the most important tools of supervision.", "Image XResolution": "37", "Image YResolution": "37", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Centimeter", "Image Software": "SlidePlayer", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Centered"}