Working with peers is powerful as it allows us to see ourselves mirrored in others. Supervision dyads (supervision sessions for two supervisees with one supervisor) for interns and therapists in training offer participants an opportunity to share and discuss problems, concerns, and blocks in their therapy work in the relative privacy of a small group-like setting while giving them the one-on-one attention that can be so important to developing proper understanding of one’s own therapeutic work.

Dyads for supervision facilitated and directed by an experienced psychotherapist offer the best of both worlds:

• direct, personal, one-on-one attention to details in client work and safe use and understanding of self in the therapeutic relationship
• mirroring and feedback from the other participant
• connection to and learning from another therapy intern, a peer with similar training and interests
• an affordable way of getting supervision without having to wait a month for a group supervision meeting

Dyads are designed to be acknowledged as clinical supervision. Participants are encouraged to support each other through creative feedback and respectful and constructive criticism where appropriate. If serious practice issues for one participant become apparent during a dyad session, I may ask that participant to book an individual supervision session with me or another supervisor or to connect with their personal therapist (e.g. in case of serious counter-transference issues).

It is preferred that interns come to this form of supervision with a partner for the dyad. However, I am keeping a list of interested interns and will help to match them up with a partner for dyads if and when possible.

Supervision with me is self-reporting. This means participants are asked to come to sessions prepared with notes on and records of their client sessions and follow-up reports re: input from previous sessions. Participants will be asked to formulate a goal for the supervisory process and regular check-ins with regard to those goals will be part of the dyad sessions.

Supervision for interns, individually or in dyads, is set up for a period of time decided upon at the beginning of the supervisory relationship. A minimum contract of six (6) months is encouraged.

Dyad sessions can be booked for two hours or longer, e.g.  two and a half hours. Dyad sessions can be facilitated in person in Cookstown or online upon agreement.

Having a place to talk about issues coming up in your client work is a valuable and important tool to practice safely, no matter if you are just starting out in your independent practice or have been in private practice for many years.

Counter-transference is easily overlooked when we practice in isolation. Transference issues can become challenging when not addressed creatively. And sometimes we just need a different perspective on a client’s issue or a possible approach to a client’s situation.

Individual clinical consultations offer dedicated and focused time for reflection and support with your client work and related questions. Sessions are offered in 1/2 hour increments in person, by phone, or online, by appointment only.

• You decide when to book an appointment
• Self-reporting — no need to write separate reports or report on every clients
• Support with implementation of new tools or exploration of new approaches
• Open-ended “book as you need” agreement
• Consultation on clinical or business issues by a peer and registered psychotherapist (CRPO #1046)

In alignment with my therapeutic practice, I offer a first meeting (approx. 30 minutes) free of charge. This is an opportunity to get to know each other and to decide if ours is a good fit.

I offer two kinds of supervision and consultation groups.

Mixed supervision groups are suitable for RPs and RPs qualifying, counsellors, Social Workers and other mental health practitioners.  Participants are usually in private practice and have completed their training in psychotherapy. Beyond that, however, experience levels may span from seasoned therapists who have practiced for five or more years to those just starting out and still requiring supervision as part of the registration process with the CRPO (please see below for further requirements). Furthermore, members of other colleges and counsellors who are not registered with any college and are practicing outside the scope of practice of psychotherapy are also welcome to join these groups when certain prerequisites are met (see below for details).

Group size is strictly held to eight (8) participants for the work to qualify as clinical supervision for those who are applying to the CRPO. Group sessions are two-and-a-half (2 ½) hours long and are scheduled once a month. Five (5) sessions constitute a rotation and participants are asked to commit to a full rotation at a time to build a cohesive and supportive group environment. Each session contains…

1. Client-Related Work: participants bring forward questions or concerns they have encountered in their work with clients. The group gives input, asks supportive questions, and offers perspectives and alternative options.
2. Practical Information: interesting information about news in the field of psychotherapy and/or topics that are important to safe and effective practice. Topics may include news about the CRPO, how to recognize and combat burn-out, professional record keeping, etc.

The mixed character of the groups supports creative and constructive learning: those new to the work will benefit from the experiences and questions of more seasoned colleagues; more seasoned therapists will stay up-to-date through hearing about new teachings and requirements of newer colleagues; counsellors will benefit from understanding some of the deeper issues faced by psychotherapists, while psychotherapists will have opportunities to support counsellors in the more preventative and informative work they are doing.

Advanced Consult groups are meant for RPs who have been in independent practice for several years and whose practice questions differ accordingly.

Group size is held to eight (8) participants for the work to qualify as clinical supervision for the professional development requirements of CRPO. Group sessions are two (2) hours long and are scheduled once a month. Five (5) sessions constitute a rotation and participants are asked to commit to a full rotation at a time to build a cohesive and supportive group environment.

Each session contains…

1. Client-Related Work: participants bring forward questions or concerns they have encountered in their work with clients. The group gives input, asks supportive questions, and offers perspectives and alternative options.
2. Practical Information: interesting information about news in the field of psychotherapy, topics that are important to safe and effective practice, questions about professional development opportunities and explorations of possible changes to the practice are some of the topics that may be discussed.

In either group format, participants share from their experience and support each other with their questions and concerns about their practices and client work. Personal concerns can be brought to the group if they are impacting the therapeutic relationship, and so may new learning and interesting information.

Specific Requirements for Therapists in Training:
Those who require full supervision for their registration process with the CRPO can join the mixed supervision and consultation groups as part of their supervision hours. However, for the hours to count towards supervision, some individual or dyad supervision will have to be booked alongside the groups to allow Sabine to have a deeper understanding of all your active cases and to follow up on each client in detail. The number and frequency of individual sessions will depend on the number of clients you carry and will be determined in a personal conversation with Sabine. For more information about individual supervision, please click here.

Specific requirements for Counsellors:
Those who have decided not to register with the CRPO and may even practice outside of the scope of practice of psychotherapy may still join the mixed supervision and consultation groups as part of their professional development work. To do so, counsellors have to agree, in writing, to the strict confidentiality requirements that the psychotherapist members of the group have to adhere to (see Professional Standards of the CRPO for more details). Furthermore, should Sabine or any of the other group members notice that a counsellor member of the group is practicing within the scope of practice, this will be brought to the attention of the counsellor member immediately. The counsellor member will be expected to immediately notify his / her client of the situation and refer the client to a psychotherapist registered with one of the Colleges allowed to use this title and practice within the scope of practice of psychotherapy.

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