clinical supervision

Evidence of Systemic Thinking

At this point in my career, it is pretty much impossible not to think as a systems therapist. The main idea for me is that no person exists in isolation. Many people and systems influence my clients. Sometimes there are so many systems involved it becomes difficult to wrap my head around the experience of my client. We all need to keep in mind one very important aspect of systemic thinking, “increasing awareness of differences should inform assessment and other interventions and result in personal commitment to enhancing services to diverse client families in diverse settings” (Lee & Nelson, 2013, p.5). It is important to take contextual factors into consideration when thinking systemically, not only who are the other people involved in this person’s life.

Clarity of Purpose and Goals for Supervision

I agree with Lee & Nelson (2013) when they state the main goal of supervision is to create “a competent, confident, lawful and ethical therapist” (pg. 31). In order to achieve this goal, I believe it is necessary for supervision to focus on not only theory, but on state requirements, AAMFT ethics and self-of-the-therapist. Advancing the profession is another goal of supervision. By becoming a supervisor and training the next generation of marriage and family therapists, I am aiding in the success and longevity of a profession I believe in so strongly.

It is also important to consider the goals of the supervisee. I need to ask my supervisees why they chose me to be their supervisor. Perhaps my supervisee chose me because I have a Play Therapy background or Emotionally Focused Therapy background.

Clarity of Supervisory Roles and Relationship

Depending on the level of training of my supervisee, I feel my role can range between hierarchical and collaborative. I believe new therapists, such as graduate students, need more direction than a therapist who is post graduate almost ready for independent licensure. Therefore, in the beginning my role will be more hierarchical and toward the end of supervision, our relationship will become more collaborative. In addition, as Palmer, Gold and Woolley (2011) states the supervisory relationship is comprised of evaluative and clinical components. Palmer states it is important to be able to provide direct, accurate feedback while maintaining a secure supervisory relationship. I feel I will be able to hold an effective hierarchical position only when I have created a secure relationship with my supervisee.

Part of the hierarchical relationship is to be able to look at case files and ensure intake notes, treatment plans, progress notes, termination notes and other documentation is accurately completed. Part of my job as a supervisor is also to help ensure my supervisee has completed all steps to become a licensed profession, including documentation for the state. Part of the hierarchical relationship will include evaluations. I want to make sure my supervisees get frequent feedback on the necessary skills they need to achieve the goal stated in the section above. I think it would be helpful for the supervisee to have a short evaluation every two months with a more in-depth evaluation every six months. The evaluations would include strengths and opportunities.

Evidence of Awareness of Personal and Profession Experiences that Impact Supervision

I feel like my past supervisory experiences definitely impact my view of my own

supervision. There are aspects that I really enjoyed and aspects I did not enjoy. I can relate the respondents in the Anderson, Schlossberg and Rigazio-DiGilio (2000) article. The article states 10% of respondents had their best experience in group supervision while 29% of respondents had their worst experience in group supervisions. While I preferred individual supervision to group supervision, the article also states 38% had their best experience when they had the same supervisor for both individual and group supervision. I preferred having the same supervisor because he knew what I was working on in regards to self-of-the-therapist and my cases. I did not have to worry about keeping two supervisors informed. The article also validates my collaborative stance of EFT “both samples rated supervisors involved in best experiences as significantly more interpersonally attractive (friendly, likable, sociable, warm), trustworthy, and expert than supervisors involved with their worst experiences” (p. 88).

Preferred Supervision Model and Connection with the Candidate’s Own Therapy Model

The term isomorphism is important here. White and Russell (2007) and Palmer, Gold and Woolley (2011) describe isomorphism as interactions and patterns in one system (i.e. the client-therapist relationship) will replicate itself in other systems (i.e. the supervisee-supervisor relationship). Since I work primarily from an Emotionally Focused Therapy model, I believe the therapeutic relationship and the supervisory relationship need to be strong. I believe one of my strengths is that I am able to create a strong therapeutic relationship whereby I connect with my clients and create a safe space for my clients to be vulnerable. I want my supervisees to be able to create this connection and safe place with their clients also.

I believe it is important for all therapists to do self of the therapist work. I really like the “Person-of-the-Therapist” Supervision Instrument from Aponte & Carlsen (2009). The instrument works with all theories. It is structured to help the supervisee focus on a specific case and helps to identify therapist issues that arise specifically from that case. I especially like step by step forms which is why I am drawn to this instrument.

Evidence of Sensitivity and Attention to Contextual Factors

I know this is an area that I will need to be more conscious and aware to ensure that I am giving attention to contextual factors. I could write 1500 words alone on this topic. So here are the important points I need to remember: I, and my supervisees, need to be curious about my supervisees’, and clients, experiences; we need to not be afraid to bring up the topic in supervision and with our clients; our first experience with a particular contextual factor needs to not be with a client or supervisee. It is important to be aware of our own schema and biases, because we all have them, so that prejudices do not turn into discrimination. For some therapists, this might require a measure of humility. I would also like to include talking about contextual factors in supervision by watching videos, completing assessments (i.e. the IAT) sharing experiences and encouraging supervisees to expose themselves to other individuals who do not share the same contextual factors.

Familiarity with Modes of Supervision

In the state of Kansas, supervision can occur in group and individual formats. Therefore, I will do both. I also find that both formats have different strengths and weaknesses. For groups, it is helpful to see the work of other supervisees. In individual, it is helpful to get more focused attention. Individual supervision also allows me to really get to know my supervisee and develop my relationship with him.

I feel it is important to see my supervisee’s work through both live and retrospective approaches. Obviously, I will not be able to do live supervision all the time or even most of the time. Therefore, video will be my preferred approach to seeing the work of my supervisee. I also find value in case consultation but if I am going to recommend a supervisee for licensure, I need to see what my supervisee is doing in session. I am most comfortable with video and live supervision as my first choices. Audio would be my least favorite choice.

Evidence of Sensitivity to and Competency in Ethics and Legal Factors of Supervision

One area that I did not get enough supervision myself around was how to handle sexual attraction to a client. Harris (2002) states that male therapists experience sexual attraction toward clients more often than female therapists. Maybe this is why I have not thought as much about it. Harris (2002) also argues boundary between joining with a client and sexual attraction can be gray instead of all or none. I need to help my supervisees to learn the difference between sexual attraction and sexual contact and make the environment safe so a supervisee feels comfortable coming to me with this issue.

It is important to be aware of and review frequently with my supervisees the state’s statues and regulations pertaining to the profession of marriage and family therapy along with the AAMFT Code of Ethics. As stated in the supervision course, I think it would be extremely helpful to allow my supervisees to research ethics before giving them the answer. This would allow the supervisee to learn where to find information.

Awareness of Requirements for AAMFT Membership, Regulatory Requirements, and Standards for the Approved Supervisor Designation

I feel membership in AAMFT is so important not only for me but for my supervisees. Being a member gives us benefits such as legal consultation, ethical advisory opinions, the Family Therapy magazine and access to the Journal of Marital and Family Therapy just to name few. Membership is open to anyone and AAMFT offers various levels. Therefore, even if one of my supervisees is not licensed as a marriage and family therapist, I would encourage if not require all of my supervisees to obtain membership.

Obviously, it is so important to stay up to date on changes that are made to the statues, regulations and codes that pertain to the CFT profession. I know that I can go to the AAMFT website to find updates on the code of ethics and my state board website for updates on state-specific changes.

As far as standards for the approved supervisor designation, I understand a refresher course is required every five years.

I have spent a considerable amount of time thinking about how my style of supervision fits with the principles of Emotionally Focused Therapy. I feel like the most challenging part was taking the pieces of what I believe are important and putting them into a framework that can be written on paper. The more I thought about it and tried to come up with a framework that makes sense, it occurred to me that the framework I was trying to put together actually already existed. That framework is ACES: Alliance, Conceptual, Experiential and Self-of-the-Therapist.

So many things that I value, even outside of EFT Supervision, are included in the ACES framework. I value emotional safety and being a secure base for both supervisees and clients, working with emotion to drive change, having a conceptual understanding of what I am supposed to do in the therapy room and also attending to person-of-the-therapist elements. Every single one of these elements are represented in the ACES framework.

Before I get into the sections, I feel it is important to mention a few things. First, just like the stages and steps of EFT and the EFT Tango, the ACES framework is fluid-meaning that I float back and forth between them. This is not a linear process. Second, the ideas of circularity and feedback loops also apply. What I put into the system between myself and the supervisee will come out and then go back into the system. Lastly, there is a parallel process occurring in the background. Many of the interventions we would use as an EFT therapist with our couples, we are also using as an EFT supervisor with our supervisees. I keep these ideas in mind regardless of which part of the ACES model I am working in.

Alliance

Above all else, alliance and emotional safety in my relationship with superivsees are the most important aspect of supervision. By prioritizing this aspect of supervision, I am unlocking the other three pieces of the ACES framework. After all, if the EFT Supervisor does not have an alliance, it is impossible to create the emotional safety between the supervisor and supervisee needed to learn any kind of experiential therapy, like Emotionally Focused Therapy. Without emotional safety, it will be more difficult to help the EFT supervisee fully develop into a competent EFT therapist. This is why I privilege alliance and attunement to the supervisee.

I do a few things to start building the alliance right away from the beginning. When I start working with a new supervisee, I am mindful of seemingly small things that might increase the supervisee’s vulnerability. One of those seemingly small things is technology. Using video recording equipment and televideo software can increase the vulnerability of the supervisee, even before we have watched any of the supervisee’s work. So I am mindful of this and help the supervisee find solutions to guide the supervisee through the use of technology. Right from the start, I feel this sets me up to be a secure base for my supervisee.

Another way I begin to build alliance and emotional safety is through feedback. Feedback is important in supervision. However, I don’t start out by letting the supervisee know what they need to change or do differently. I find myself using encouragement and praising the supervisee for using skills they already have and are already using in their EFT therapy sessions. I find that by using praise and positive feedback, I can create emotional safety between the supervisee and myself. This will allow us to do the deeper work later on. Of course, this is not to say I do not give constructive feedback. I do. I just believe when we can continue to use the skills that we are doing well and sprinkle in new skills, we can overcome the really challenging moments when we want to give up learning and using EFT.

A third strategy for creating emotional safety is playfulness. I love using little phrases like, “would you like to phone a friend” or “would you be willing to try a social experiment?” or “EFT ninja skill.” In my experiences so far, I feel that this playfulness brings down protective walls and brings humor into supervision. Playfulness and laughter is important.

Another strategy is through collaboration. I collaborate with my supervisees. While the supervisory relationship is naturally one of hierarchy, I feel it is important to have a relationship of collaboration. It provides a sense of “team” and acceptance while helping with the learning process.

Lastly, I work to build alliance, safety and security with my supervisee by sharing my own personal struggles while I was in supervision. This seemingly simple strategy helps to normalize the difficulties my supervisees might be experiencing and make them feel less alone. Especially if their supervisor, someone who by definition is positional to them, has experienced these struggles in the past and is willing to share about those struggles.

Conceptual Development and Integration of Theory

I have heard from various trainers that Sue Johnson would say, “learn the stages and steps of EFT and then forget them.” It is like she is saying that there is importance to conceptually knowing the flow of EFT (more about forgetting about the stages and steps below). And conceptualization is important. If an EFT therapist tries to initiate a bonding event in stage 2 prior to de-escalating in stage 1, there will be little progress. Likewise, if a therapist attempts to repair an attachment injury prior to de-escalation and withdrawer reengagement, there could be additional wounding and harm to the client system.

Personally, my entire world changed when I learned The EFT Tango. This was the missing link that helped me put more structure in my sessions and also helped me to know when the couple was ready to enter into the engaged encounter.

For these reasons, it is also important for the EFT supervisee to have a conceptual understanding of not just EFT, but attachment and emotional regulation as well.

When I’m working with a supervisee, I often use conceptual pieces to help my supervisee learn while working with them. For example, if a supervisee is asking for help on the EFT Tango, I might use the EFT Tango while talking with them.

A second strategy for helping supervisee learn the conceptual pieces of EFT and attachment theory is by asking them to tell me which stage, step and EFT Tango move they are working in and how they know when showing me video clips.

Another strategy for helping supervisees gain conceptual knowledge is through the use of handouts and worksheets. Over the years I have come across several helpful resources so I share these with the supervisee. In addition, I direct supervisee to other resources, like free videos on the internet and videos they can purchase on the ICEEFT website. Personally, I also really like The Practice of Becoming an Emotionally Focused Therapist: The Workbook. The quiz questions help to facilitate learning concepts of EFT.

Experiential Learning

Now for the other half of Sue Johnson’s statement. Forget about the stages and steps so that we can work experientially, not cognitively. This is the area that I have to constantly remind myself to focus on and use as my vehicle for learning. Experiencing helps to integrate the lesson and helps to implicitly process concepts while instilling a deeper confidence for the supervisee. Here again we have some parallel process occurring by teaching the supervisee how to work with emotion by doing it with the supervisee. The supervisee can then go to the client and work with emotion.

As I mentioned before, I often use the EFT Tango in supervision when processing a supervisee’s goal for supervision. For example, I start with the present process that is occurring for my supervisee in supervision. I ask her, “what is it like for you right now to show this clip?” and “what are you feeling right now?” as we talk about blocks and person of the therapist.

Another strategy for working experientially is putting theory into practice through the use of role plays. As the supervisor, I want to model the “how to” of working with emotions. After I have processed an intervention conceptually, I will then invite the supervisee into a role play. I usually try to model first, playing the therapist so the supervisee can feel what it might be like as the client to have the particular intervention done to them. It is important to note here that I have learned that sometimes supervisees have a hard time playing the client. They might get caught up in the cognition of what this client would say instead of allowing themselves to be in the experience. Other supervisees have a hard time putting themselves in their client’s shoes. In this case it is important to allow the supervisee to use their own emotional experience, instead of the client’s.

After a few minutes of role playing we pause and process the experience. Then I invite the supervisee into the role play again, this time to play the therapist while I play the client. With this process, the supervisee gets to experientially engage in both roles and allow themselves to feel their emotions in a safe space to play and try different interventions.

Since role playing in itself can be vulnerable, I am keenly aware that self-of-the-therapist struggles can come up in a variety of ways. I am aware of this prior to the role play and am watching for behavioral indicators of blocks, which I will discuss in the next section.

Self (Person) of the Therapist

As noted in the previous section, experiential learning is important and valuable to the development of the EFT therapist. However, experiential learning also opens the door for person-of-the-therapist (POTT) issues to arise. When this happens, it is important for me, as the Supervisor, to help the supervisee to identify that this POTT issue is coming up and to help my supervisee to be able to identify how it is impacting their work with their clients. Here again is circularity. For the supervisee to feel emotionally safe enough to explore their POTT issues and blocks, I must continually develop a safe and secure attachment with the supervisee through acceptance, sensitivity, responsiveness and a collaborative stance.

In addition, EFT supervisors need to be aware and competent in identifying blocks for supervisees that could lead to behaviors that negatively impact the therapeutic process. I am always looking for behavioral indicators from my supervisees that might tell me there is a block. For example, when supervisees choose to not turn toward a particular emotion shared by the client; or when the supervisee gets cognitive and psychoeducational instead of curious and experiential.

Supervisors need to also help the supervisee become emotionally grounded, not get hijacked by their own emotional experience outside of their awareness. Therapists who struggle to do this for themselves will also struggle to help their clients with change events.

This then circles back to emotional safety in the supervisory relationship. When I can create a safe space for supervisees to look at their POTT, this will allow them to put down walls and take a look. In the spirit of circularity, when I can respond with empathy and validation, this then increases the emotional safety and security in the supervisory relationship which then allows the supervisee to continue to risk and take peeks at POTT issues. And of course, the strategy for working with blocks is the HEART model, which I am still working to master.

Supervisor Profile:

Jessica Schroeder (hereinafter, “Supervisor”) has been practicing as a Licensed Clinical Marriage and Family Therapist since 2012. Jessica received her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of Kansas in 2008 and her Master’s degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from Friends University in 2010. Currently, she has a private practice in Leavenworth, Kansas and has maintained this private practice since September 2010.

Jessica started her formal training as an Approved Supervisor in 2014. She completed The Fundamentals of Marriage and Family Therapy Supervision through the AAMFT Institute March 5-9, 2014. This course was instructed by Dr. Toni Zimmerman. Kim Rigsby, LCMFT, RPT-S, AAMFT Approved Supervisor, provided mentoring for Jessica’s supervision during this training period. Jessica has held the Registered Play Therapist designation since January 2012 and is Level 2 Trained in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. Jessica has held the designation of Certified in Emotionally Focused Therapy since October 2017 and Certified Emotionally Focused Therapy Supervisor since July 2022.

Purpose:

This supervision agreement is made between Supervisor and ___________________________ (hereinafter, “Supervisee”). This agreement outlines expectations and procedures for clinical supervision. Supervision is being provided in order to assist the Supervisee in obtaining the client and supervision experience necessary for Clinical Licensure as a Marriage and Family Therapist in the state of Kansas and Clinical Membership for the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. The undersigned agree to enter into this clinical supervision contract with the purpose and conditions summarized below.

Time and Frequency of Supervision:

Pursuant to K.A.R. 102-5-7a, postgraduate supervision experience shall consist of at least one hour of clinical supervision during each week in which the applicant has 15 or more hours of direct client contact and at least two separate clinical supervision sessions per month, at least one of which shall be one-on-one, individual supervision. The Supervisee will have 3000 hours total clinical experience which consists of 1500 direct client contact hours. Supervision hours include at least 50 individual sessions. The remaining 50 hours may be individual sessions or group sessions.

The Supervisee may schedule appointments as needed to fulfill this requirement. Supervision will occur at 7133 W 95th Street, Ste 217, Overland Park, KS 66212. All supervision will be face-to-face meaning either in-person or via HIPAA compliant video; telephonic supervision will only be conducted in the case of an emergency or if both parties agree prior to the scheduled supervision session.

Cancellation of the Supervision Appointment:

The time and location may be changed upon mutual agreement of the Supervisor and Supervisee. Both Supervisor and Supervisee will provide at least 24-hour advance notice if they are unable to meet. Supervisee will be expected to pay for a scheduled appointment that is canceled without 24-hours notice.

Content of Supervision:

The content of supervision will highlight the development of systemic case conceptualization and guidance with session and treatment process. Beyond the systemic/relational perspective, the Supervisor is open to working with the Supervisee from many different marriage and family theories. The Supervisor works primarily with the following theories: Bowenian Systems Theory, Contextual Therapy, Strategic Family Therapy, Structural Family Therapy, Experiential Therapy, Solution Focused Therapy, Narrative Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Emotionally Focused Therapy, Play Therapy and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. The Supervisor and Supervisee will additionally work from both the DSM-IV and the DSM-V in accordance with Kansas statutes. The Supervisor will also address issues of cultural diversity, gender and spirituality as they affect individual cases and Supervisee’s developmental process as a therapist. Ethical issues will always be held to a high standard and considered and reviewed as needed.

Modality of Supervision:

Supervision will include use of raw data of the supervisee’s performance through live supervision, videotape or audiotape, as well as self-report. These methods ensure the best opportunity to observe the Supervisee’s skills and relationship with clients and comply with the AAMFT Supervisor’s Handbook. The Supervisee will be required to show video recordings of clinical work or engage in live supervision at a minimum of once a month, but it is recommended that this occur more frequently. The Supervisee will obtain written consent from each client prior to recording sessions. Client case files and videotapes will be properly safeguarded at all times in a HIPAA-compliant manner. Videotapes are made for supervision review only, are not part of a client case file and will be erased after review in supervision or when it is known they will not be used in supervision.

When doing live supervision, be sure to either have a case presentation or a videotape clip prepared in the event that the case does not show or cancels at the last minute. Generally, live supervision begins with a 15 minute pre-session discussion, a mid-session break, and a post-session discussion.

The Supervisee will be asked to identify the client’s chief complaint, short-term and long-term goals for treatment, and systemic hypothesis. All case files will be secured and later destroyed in accordance with Kansas statutes. In addition to the above methods, the Supervisor may also randomly ask the Supervisee to have clients fill out an evaluation form to be mailed directly to the Supervisor.

Supervision Preparation:

It is the Supervisee’s responsibility to be prepared for supervision sessions by identifying which cases and issues he/she wants to discuss. Prior to the session, the Supervisee is expected to prepare the caseload spreadsheet indicating cases to be reviewed. The Supervisor will provide a blank electronic file of the spreadsheet to the Supervisee. The Supervisor is to be notified of all intakes. Together the Supervisor and Supervisee will decide if the case matches the Supervisee’s level of skill and Supervisor’s ability to supervise. Each case must be supervised a minimum of one time during the course of treatment. The Supervisor is to be notified of all termination of cases.

At the beginning of each supervisory session, time will be offered to address any critical incidents, emergencies, legal and ethical issues. At times, the Supervisor may choose to bring up issues that are relevant to the supervision process. Through collaboration, the Supervisor and Supervisee will develop a presentation format with the Supervisee’s chosen modality.

The caseload spreadsheet will also be utilized to track hours toward licensure. The Supervisor and Supervisee together will track hours via the caseload spreadsheet.

Confidentiality of Supervision:

Supervision is confidential. The information shared with me concerning clients or the Supervisee will be kept confidential. If the Supervisee would like the Supervisor to provide information to another person, the Supervisee must sign a release of information for each person. This includes other supervisors, agencies and KS-BSRB, if applicable. The Supervisee is also responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of group supervision. Exceptions to this confidentiality include violations to legal and ethical standards, situations falling under Kansas reporting statutes and regulations and addressing HIPAA violations.

Fees:

Individual supervision time is billed in 50 minute increments. Group supervision is billed in 90 minute increments. Supervision is provided at the rate of $80/50 minutes for individual supervision (1 supervisee) and the following for group supervision: $50/90 minutes for group supervision. Rates may change with a 30-day notice to Supervisee. Payment will be made by check, cash, debit card, or credit card at each supervision session. If a payment is not made, a payment plan will be created to assist the Supervisee in fulfilling the balance. If failure to make payments continues, a 30-day notice of termination will be given and the Supervisee will need to obtain alternative supervision. The Supervisor will also inform the Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board (KS-BSRB) of the change to supervisory status and the reason for the change.

Contact Outside of Supervision:

Outside of supervision, the best way to reach the Supervisor is by a voice telephone call. Text and email is allowed but must comply with HIPAA confidentiality and security standards.

If a client emergency arises, the Supervisee is required to contact the Supervisor immediately. The Supervisee is to call the Supervisor. The use of text and email is prohibited in emergency situations. For more on emergencies, see the next section.

The Supervisor and Supervisee will not communicate with each other through social media platforms, to include (but not limited to) Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn, etc.

Emergencies:

For urgent matters, the Supervisee shall contact Supervisor at 913-579-3557. The Supervisee will not utilize email in urgent matters. The Supervisee will notify the Supervisor immediately of any legal/ethical (“red flag”) issues that arise. This includes (but is not limited to) actual or suspected spousal abuse, child abuse, suicide, harm to self or others, any legal actions that could involve the Supervisee or Supervisor, any exploitative contact with a client, or breaches of confidentiality, disputes with clients or impasses in therapy, allegations of unethical behavior by clients, colleagues, or others (e.g., family members), threats of a complaint or lawsuit, mental health emergencies requiring immediate action, high-risk situations and cases in which clients evidence suicidal thoughts, gestures, attempts, or a significant history of attempts, or those presenting with a history of, propensity for, or threats of violence, contemplated departures from standards of practice or exceptions to general rules, standards, policies, or practices, suspected or known clinical or ethical errors, contact with clients outside the context of treatment, incidental or otherwise, legal issues such as possible reporting obligations related to suspected abuse or neglect, or ethical violations by other professionals. These cases will also be reviewed at the next scheduled supervision meeting.

If the Supervisee is employed by an agency or another practice, the Supervisee is responsible for familiarizing herself/himself with the policies and procedures of her/his current place of employment regarding critical incidents, therapeutic crisis and/or emergencies, as well as all relevant legal and ethical guidelines. In the event of an emergency or therapeutic crisis, please notify all involved supervisors immediately following (or during) the session or contact in question. If applicable, any formal reports will be made within 24 hours of receipt of information.

Absence of Supervisor:

During the Supervisor’s absence, regularly scheduled supervision sessions will not occur. The Supervisee will obtain supervision from his or her backup supervisor.

External Employment:

If the Supervisee is employed by an agency, another practice or supervised by another supervisor for any other reason, Supervisee hereby gives consent for Supervisor to contact that supervisor as a means of ensuring supportive collaboration. The Supervisee will follow the administrative policies and procedures of the employer/agency. “Red flag” cases that require immediate supervisory guidance will first be referred to the Supervisor then the Site Supervisor, and the Supervisee will follow the employer/agency protocols for client safety and mandatory reporting. All “red flag” incidents must be reported to the Supervisor via phone call as soon as possible after the occurrence of the incident.

In the case of a dispute between supervisors, a discussion will occur between the agency/employer supervisor, Supervisor and the Supervisee.

Employment by JS Therapy Group, LLC:

In the event Supervisee is employed with JS Therapy Group, LLC during the term of this supervision contract, both Supervisee and Supervisor understand and acknowledge that Supervisor and Supervisee will function in a dual capacity that has the potential to affect the supervision process. Both parties agree they will not exploit the employment relationship in the course of supervision. Other than the ethical and

legal duties for reporting set forth in this supervision contract, all confidentiality provisions shall remain in effect. Should Supervisee or Supervisor believe the employment relationship is conflicting with or negatively affecting the supervision process in any way, both parties agree that they will utilize the Grievance Procedure set forth in this supervision agreement, and if a mutually agreeable resolution is not reached, the parties will terminate supervision.

Client Disclosure Statement:

The Supervisee will identify the Supervisor in the Supervisee’s Client Disclosure Statement so that client consent is provided to allow disclosure of treatment information to the Supervisor to ensure that no conflictual dual relationship exists between the Supervisor and the counseling client. The Supervisor will review the disclosure statement to make sure all necessary information is included to inform the client of his or her rights. Supervisee agrees to make any changes the Supervisor deems necessary. Clients must be informed in writing of the Supervisor’s name and phone number and that their case is supervised by these individuals. In addition, if the Supervisee is joining any group supervision, clients must be notified in the disclosure. Included within the disclosure statement will be a statement about technology and dual relationships (Below is an example):

Dual Relationships: My professional code of AAMFT ethics and Kansas laws are very strict regarding dual relationships. Every consideration is taken to avoid such relationships. Due to this ethical code, my interaction with a client on any and all social networking sites would be considered a dual relationship.

Email: Should a client contact the therapist via email, the intent of the email will be to communicate information for the client’s use only to confirm an appointment. It is understood that a response from the client to confirm an appointment is acceptable however no other information is to be communicated via email between client and the therapist. No clinical information will be disclosed through email. I also understand the therapist will not engage in therapeutic services over electronic mail.

Texting: Should the therapist receive a text message from a client, the therapist will respond via text only if the text is about an appointment time. For all other questions and content, the therapist will request the client contact the therapist by phone or wait until the next scheduled session time. No clinical information will be disclosed through text messaging.

Cell Phones: Like many professionals today, the therapist utilizes a cell phone for business purposes. Please know that the therapist will refrain from addressing the client’s full name or the names pertinent to the client’s presenting issue. The therapist is trained to provide and maintain client confidentiality and client privacy. Additionally, the therapist will not conduct therapy over the phone. The therapist will always strive to keep conversations concise and will wait until a regularly scheduled session in order to address the presenting issue.

Other Forms of Communication: Online websites, including Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn are

strictly prohibited as a means of communicating with your therapist.

Emergency Circumstances: Clients are directed to always call 911 for any emergency requiring

medical assistance or involving immediate danger to themselves or persons in their household. I

also understand I can refer to my Clients Rights and Responsibilities brochure for other

emergency numbers for crisis assistance.

No Guarantee of Recommendation for Licensure; Review of Progress:

Supervisee understands and acknowledges that there is no expectation or guarantee of the outcome of

supervision. Supervisee’s completion of his/her licensure training plan does not guarantee a

recommendation for licensure. A recommendation for licensure is based on many factors in addition to

the completion of supervision hours. The Supervisor will provide ongoing verbal feedback on the

Supervisee’s performance in supervision to include both clinical skills and professional development.

These evaluations will focus on sharpening the Supervisee’s strengths as well as identifying and

developing a plan for how to address areas of needed growth. Formal, written evaluations will be

completed every 6 months and at the conclusion of this agreement. The Supervisee will also provide a

written evaluation of the Supervisor, using a form provided by the Supervisor. Open and honest feedback

is strongly encouraged.

Grievance Procedures:

It is expected that both the Supervisor and Supervisee will discuss any problems that occur in the

supervisory relationship when they occur, so that they can be resolved quickly. Since the Supervisee

typically has less power in the relationship, the Supervisee can designate a third party who will be part of

the resolution, should informal methods fail to lead to resolution. The third party must be an individual

who is a Kansas LCMFT and an approved supervisor.

Person of the Therapist:

The Supervisor believes supervision is most helpful when it moves between clinical skills and utilization

of a person-of-the-therapist (POTT) training model. At times, POTT issues will arise without knowing.

For this reason, POTT work is important within the supervision process. It is important to note that

supervision is not therapy; therefore, in the event that personal issues surface, the Supervisee may be

asked to work on certain issues that impact the therapeutic relationships. Therapy will be pursued outside

of supervision and at the Supervisee’s expense.

As with therapy, there are both risks and benefits of engaging in POTT work. In addition to being able to

integrate personal and professional selves thereby improving personal and professional competencies, it

can feel uncomfortable, even scary, to open oneself up to a supervisor who also conducts evaluations of

the supervisee. The Supervisee may also experience uncomfortable emotions. The Supervisee is

encouraged to bring these concerns to supervision.

Procedural and Professional Safeguards:

Supervisor holds herself to the standards set forth in the AAMFT Code of Ethics, as well as the Kansas

laws and regulations for Marriage and Family Therapists. If unethical behavior occurs, in accordance with

the AAMFT Code of Ethics or Kansas State Statutes, Supervisor will report to the necessary professional

bodies, including the Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board, as well as the American Association

of Marriage and Family Therapist. These issues will also be addressed in supervision.

Please note: these same standards are held in regards to other supervisors or any outsourced work the

Supervisee may be doing through an agency. The Supervisor reserves the right to contact them for

clarification. If deemed necessary, the Supervisor will report any unethical behavior.

Supervisee Profile:

The following information is requested of the Supervisee and will be treated as confidential information

and is intended to familiarize the Supervisor of the Supervisee’s academic and clinical background:

● Resume

● Names and contact information of three references

● Job description or description of professional setting and activities

● Name and title of other supervisors, with a request for a written consent for exchange of

information between this and other supervisors

● Notarized Copy of Driver’s License

● Copy of Degree

● Copy of current license (TLMFT/LMFT)

● Copy of current malpractice insurance

● Copy of disclosure statement

● Copy of AAMFT Code of Ethics signed by supervisee

● Copy of Kansas Statutes signed by supervisee

● Marketing material used by Supervisee

Agreement: I, Jessica Schroeder, agree to provide supervision in accordance with the terms outlined in

this contract and any additional documents hereto and appended and signed by myself and the Supervisee

named in the document.

Consent:

I, _______________________________ (Supervisee), agree to the terms set forth in this contract and any

additional documents hereto and appended and signed by myself and the Supervisor named in this

document.

This agreement will become effective ____________________ (start date of supervision) and will be

valid until the completion of postgraduate supervision unless the Supervisor or the Supervisee provide the

other with a 30-day written notice of intent to terminate.