Clinical Supervision for Effective Mental Healthcare

Running head: CLINICAL SUPERVISION FOR EFFECTIVE MENTAL HEALTHCARE
CLINICAL SUPERVISION FOR EFFECTIVE MENTAL HEALTHCARE
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author’s Note

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CLINICAL SUPERVISION FOR EFFECTIVE MENTAL HEALTHCARE
A proper competent framework of quality supervision has to be maintained in
healthcare service of clinical psychology to enhance the development of the supervisee along
with ensuring the safety and security of the clients and the public. The two main
predicaments in the field of clinical supervision are inadequate clinical supervision and
harmful clinical supervision have been sufficiently studied and analyzed. Supervisors
generally give priority to safeguarding the interests of clients/patients compared to the
training and guidance of the supervisee. Investigation revealed a very critical and pressing
fact that is the rate of incidence of the poor and detrimental clinical supervision directed to
the supervisees. The main motive of clinical supervision is to offer a secured and private
environment where clients can confidentially reflect and share their issues. Efficient
supervisors must be keen on observing, mentoring, instructing, evaluating, inspiring and
generating an atmosphere that encourages self-assurance, motivates the supervisee into
learning and applying the development in dealing with necessary situations. However, in the
recent past, the supervisors have misused their advantage and authority in extending
unethical, harmful and inadequate clinical supervision, which has led to the maximum
number of reported cases over the last decade. Proper supervision of supervision has to be
implemented along with providing a safe environment that will exclude chances of
vulnerability and thus minimizing liability.
Most of the literatures available are either deficient or inconsistent in providing proper
defined frameworks and constructs to conceptualize and analyze supervision that affects the
supervisees in a harmful manner. Michael V. Ellis in 2001 was the foremost to attempt in
bringing clarity by generating a continuum between the two scenarios namely bad clinical
supervision and harmful clinical supervision. A major study revealed two gross loopholes in
the systems, which required immediate attention (Ellis et al., 2013). Firstly, a revised
structured guidelines for both the supervisor and the supervisee regarding defined concepts

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CLINICAL SUPERVISION FOR EFFECTIVE MENTAL HEALTHCARE
and models on inadequate and harmful supervision. Second is the requirement of initial data
of occurrence for such unethical and damaging clinical supervision, which will assist in
achieving better insights and perceptions that will work towards a beneficial outcome
(Barnett & Molzon, 2014). Basic recognition and identification of the variables and the
factors that add to the quality of the supervision can help in generating an effective and safe
mental healthcare (Ellis et al., 2017). Another essential factor that will aid in solving the
situation would be educating the supervisees about the clinical supervisory process before the
start of the process. This will also help in reducing the number of cases where the supervisee
has received inadequate or harmful clinical supervision unknowingly (APA, 2015).
Framework and structured supervision of supervision for the supervisors along with the
supervisees needs to be maintained, keeping in mind a few criteria detailed below.
Firstly, mandatory guided courses for the supervisors to judge their competence and
coherence must be started for all clinical supervisors. Proper analysis of the supervisors’
based on their rationality, lucidity, capability along with proficiency must be documented and
scrutinized based on the latest APA guidelines (APA, 2015). Every supervisor must be
trained to attain maximum competence backed with relevant knowledge and expertise along
with servicing as the role model for supervisee (Zucchero et al., 2014). The bare minimums
during training supervisors must include various models and reported case studies with
theories of modalities and supervision and education on ways to form engaging yet
professional relationships and maintaining it in progression. Instructions in dealing with the
emotional reactions of the supervisee are of utmost importance with in depth knowledge of
legal and ethical standards must be given to all supervisors (Barnett & Molzon, 2014). Proper
procedures and adequate policies must be in place to safeguard ethical practice of counseling
over phone or social media and other digital forms of communications between the
supervisee and concerned supervisor. Appropriate amount of consideration must be

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CLINICAL SUPERVISION FOR EFFECTIVE MENTAL HEALTHCARE
maintained based on distance, security and privacy (Bernard & Goodyear, 2014). Regular
assessment of the supervisors must also be included to check consistency along with
reassuring the quality of the supervision.
Secondly, every supervisor must be educated with the ability to adjust to varied
diversities by infusing himself with ways to avoid bias, overcome stereotyping and
circumvent prejudiced situations that might come along while dealing with multiples clients
from diverse backgrounds (Wrape et al., 2015). Training must be provided on ways to tackle
contrasting views and broaden the range on diverse dimensions such as gender, culture, age,
socio economic status, race, national origin, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, disabilities
(Alessi et al., 2015). Supervisors must be equally sensitive to all his supervisees without
showing signs of predisposed partiality (Carmel et al., 2016). Recognition of the fact, that
training oneself with knowledge of such vast diversities, will only enrich the professional
development of the supervisor. Achievement of such awareness goes on to be a lifelong
learning triumph (Andrews et al., 2013). Therefore, all supervisors, to address the diverse
clientele, must adapt a multicultural framework, which may be effectively applicable to all,
hence barring all sorts of discrepancies. Such unprejudiced practice will draw the client’s
respect as well as boost the growth of therapeutic self-confidence in the supervisee
(McNamara et al., 2017). This will thus help in establishing a safe atmosphere for supervisees
coming for counseling from different and diverse spheres of life.
Thirdly, guaranteeing a quality, which is commendable in terms of supervisory
relationship, is crucial to achieve effective and positive clinical supervision. The richer the
quality of the supervisory relationship that the supervisor is able to establish with the client,
the more proficient is its evaluation along with advanced collaboration between the two
(Martino et al., 2016). Once such superior quality is customized, initiating trust, humility,
transparency, honesty, attentiveness and attaining dignified care becomes easy and