[This is the first of a three-part post
on finding clinical supervision in Hawaii.]

On Friday, October 29, 2010, in response one of my posts on clinical supervision, I received an email  from a frustrated counselor in training in Hawaii named Shari.  Here is what she said:

While I respect your description of what YOU do as a supervisor, I do not see that at all in Hawaii. First off, there are NO requirements for supervisors, not even length of time in practice, let alone training. There is also no allowance for pre license grads going into private practice (unless they can find all cash clients who are willing to pay for counseling from someone who is not allowed to say she is a mental health counselor). Many sites do not provide supervision so we are forced to pay for it.

The additional liability supervisors take on in this case is minimized by the fact that the sites will most likely be sued rather than the supervisor of the counselor who doesn’t even work there. From what I have seen, no supervisor is offering to read all our notes or spend a bunch of extra time on us – just charging for the hour or more we spend in group or individual supervision and that’s it. And being available 24/7? – in your dreams! I’m not sure what it is like in other States but I think your description may be very idealized compared to what many (most?) of us grads are really dealing with.

For perspective from the other side – how would you like to be forced to pay $250 – $500 a month out of a salary of $30K – 40K (going rate for unlicensed counselors at agencies around here). That is, if you are lucky enough to even find a job as the State of Hawaii continues to decimate mental health services with extreme budget cuts. Many of us work part time or on contract with no benefits and STILL have to pay these rates for supervision. Luckily, we have a sympathetic professor who may get a supervision class going as a continuing ed program – otherwise we might be forced to take on another job just to pay for supervision!

I’m sorry but i do feel gouged – your comments have not convinced me as they are so very far away from my own experience.”

Even though Shari didn’t ask for suggestions or strategies to resolve this issue, I want to offer some possible steps to her and others that may be in similar situations.  I am not a fan of pre-licensed therapists going into private practice any more than I am a fan of incompetence clinical supervision so let me see if I can help!

Competent clinical supervision requires more than just experience working in the mental health field.  It requires skills  related to teaching, consulting, mentoring, and evaluating – not skills that all counselors necessarily have. It is for that reason that the standard of practice for clinical supervision is rapidly changing to include additional training in those areas as they relate specifically to supervision.

As counselors, you and I are mandated to advocate for what is in our clients’ best interests.  This includes training for new professionals in our field.  Standards of practice and training for clinical supervision are extensions of that training so I am happy to make some noise about the absence of these in any state that turns a blind eye.  Are you willing to make some noise, too, Shari?

In my post on Thursday, you will hear from another one of our colleagues who sheds some light on the plight of new counselors in Hawaii.