| FOR IAHIP ACCREDITED SUPERVISORS AND THOSE SEEKING FIRST TIME ACCREDITATION AS A SUPERVISOR.
Prepared by the Supervision Committee |
How can I find out about the supervision accreditation process?
Applicants for re-accreditation as a supervisor: My reflective statement, what should I include?
Can I take a break from supervising?
Can I supervise and not practise as a psychotherapist?
Who is eligible to supervise me?
Group ratios – what is allowed?
As a qualified or trainee supervisor can I deliver supervision online?
What course should I do / is suitable for / accredited by IAHIP?
Can I talk to a member of the Supervision Committee in person?
What if my supervisor application is late?
I get supervision at work, will this count?
How long is my application form stored for?
How much supervision of my supervision do I need?
How can I find out about the supervision accreditation process?
Applicants for first time accreditation as a supervisor: Please see Bye-law 5C (Criteria for initial registration as an accredited supervisor of the Irish Association for Humanistic and Integrative Psychotherapy) and Bye-law 5E (criteria for professional supervision training course standards for accreditation as a supervisor of the Irish Association for Humanistic and Integrative Psychotherapy).
Applicants for re-accreditation as a supervisor: Please see Bye-law 5D (Re-registration as an accredited supervisor of the Irish Association for Humanistic and Integrative Psychotherapy).
Applicants for first time accreditation as a supervisor: What do I do if there is a long delay between finishing training and getting IAHIP supervision accreditation?
Please be aware that there can be a delay between the submission of any supervisor application form and consideration of that application form by the Supervision Committee. It may be some further time before the GB can meet to ratify your application. Bear in mind that although the Supervision Committee meets monthly, only every alternate meeting is an applicants’ meeting. This means that there is a period of 2 months between each applicants’ meeting, and this may be extended if the August or Christmas breaks fall during this time. In addition, other circumstances may cause delays, such as low committee numbers, the recent pandemic, or specific applicant issues which take up a lot of committee time. Therefore, you should never assume that your application will be reviewed at the meeting subsequent to your application’s arrival in the office. We suggest that you are clear when contracting with your supervisees that you cannot guarantee the date by which you will be regarded as an accredited supervisor by IAHIP. IAHIP and the Supervision Committee recognise that the time between completing your supervisor training and being ratified as a supervisor by IAHIP is something of a “no man’s land”, however, IAHIP and the Supervision Committee is not responsible for your status as a supervisor during this period. It is your responsibility to discuss this with your supervisee(s).
Applicants for first time accreditation as a supervisor:
My supervisor’s statement, what should this include?
Your supervisor must provide a typed reflective statement assessing your overall performance as a supervisor. Reference to the following areas should be included in your supervisor’s statement.
• Quality and quantity of your supervisory work as described in your application. Any claims made in your application regarding the number of hours, supervisees etc. as listed on your application must be verified by your supervisor.
• How you attend to the core functions of supervision with your own supervisees under the headings of ‘restorative’, ‘managerial’ and ‘educative’.
Please note also that the functions of supervision are related to the applicants’ work with their supervisees.
- In their report Supervisors should note the following functions:
Managerial: Ensuring the accountability of the supervisee (e.g., how do you ensure your supervisee’s practice is safe and is delivering quality care?)
Educative: Developing the knowledge and practice of the supervisee (e.g., how do you track and / or meet the learning needs, strengths, and learning style of your supervisees?)
Restorative: Helping the supervisee to feel supported in their work (e.g., how do you know what this means to your supervisee, how can you offer support, how can you facilitate them to source other supports?)
Applicants for re-accreditation as a supervisor:
Can I supervise while awaiting the processing / outcome of my supervisor re-accreditation application?
Assuming that your psychotherapy membership is up to date and you are in good standing with the association, there is no need to contact the office or request written confirmation of your supervision status or eligibility to supervise in the period between submitting your supervisor re-accreditation application and the outcome of that application.
Applicants for re-accreditation as a supervisor:
My reflective statement, what should I include?
Your reflective personal statement should clearly demonstrate how your choice of CPD activities has enhanced and supported your practice (Maximum word count of 500 words – minimum 350).
This reflective statement applies to your professional supervisory practice, as distinct from your psychotherapy practice or private life.
In the statement you will need to clarify how your supervision-specific / relevant CPD informs your practice with respect to the functions of supervision. The Supervision Committee will accept any CPD as long as it is specifically relevant to the practice of supervision. This might be supervision related research, reading (i.e., books, articles), attendance at supervision workshops, talks, conferences, personal reflection (e.g., supervision journaling), and engagement in any mode of supervision itself (i.e., peer, group, individual). This list is not exhaustive but it is specific to the “restorative, managerial, and educative” functions of supervision and how you offer these to your supervisee.
Consider the following questions under the headings:
Restorative: Helping the supervisee to feel supported in their work (e.g., how do you know what this means to your supervisee, how can you offer support, how can you facilitate them to source other supports?)
Managerial: Ensuring the accountability of the supervisee (e.g., how do you ensure your supervisee’s practice is safe and is delivering quality care?)
Educative: Developing the knowledge and practice of the supervisee (e.g., how do you track and / or meet the learning needs, strengths, and learning style of your supervisees?)
Can I take a break from supervising?
Taking a break from supervising is a personal decision. However, if you do take a break for personal or other reasons you must advise IAHIP of your intention and your name will be taken off the supervisor register until you resume your supervisory practice. You must also advise your insurance company when you are resuming your supervisor practice.
If for any reason you become a non-practising member of IAHIP you cannot supervise clients during this period (see Bye Law 4A Non-Practising Associate).
Can I supervise and not practise as a psychotherapist?
No. See Bye Law 5 clause 7.3 In the interest of competence, supervisors must be actively engaged in practising psychotherapy.
The Supervision Committee does not expect applicants to spend vast sums of money on supervision events. CPD can come from informal as well as formal sources. However, we would like to see evidence or reference to learning which specifically informs your supervision practice. This can take the form of specific reading, reflective journaling for yourself following supervision sessions (whether received or conferred), writing a short piece for publication, or blogs. It can also come from supervision-specific /supervision-relevant discussion groups with peers, review of podcasts, talks, or other materials on-line. Finally, it may come from formal events such as conferences, workshops, or supervision forums. We are also happy to consider events or learning which is not formally specific to supervision, but which on reflection, you can demonstrate is applicable to the supervision setting (e.g., attending updated Children’s First training, which allows you to monitor more clearly your supervisees’ attention and compliance with relevant legislation clearly lends itself to the “accountability” functions of supervision).
What happens if my Supervision Accreditation lapses or if my supervision re-accreditation application is late?
It is your responsibility to get your re-accreditation applications in 5 years from the point of last (re)accreditation. Whilst the Supervision Committee might offer some flexibility where applicants are a couple of months late for reasons of illness or similar, you need to be aware that there is an accountability issue inherent in not maintaining your supervision status and being “in good standing” with your organisation. Where there is a significant length of time between your due date and your submission date there is no guarantee that your application will be processed. You may be asked to account for this delay, undertake further training and/or resubmit a first-time supervisor application form.
As a supervisor you are responsible to inform all supervisees of any update or changes in your status as a supervisor as this may impact their training/practice.
There is an agreement to introduce a timely reminder system for supervisors due to re-accredit however it is ultimately the applicant’s responsibility to monitor this.
IAHIP will advise you that if your re-accreditation is not submitted to IAHIP within 3 months of the renewal date, you risk removal from the IAHIP Supervisor Register.
Who is eligible to supervise me?
(a) IAHIP Accredited supervisors or;
(b) Psychotherapists from equivalent professional organisations who are accredited or have formal recognition as supervisors by their own professional organisation and who pursue their own practice from a shared humanistic and integrative perspective or are sufficiently familiar with and sympathetic towards humanistic and integrative psychotherapy to be able to provide supervision in a way that is congruent with the supervisee’s orientation as a humanistic and integrative psychotherapist.
All supervisors must be familiar with IAHIP's Code of Ethics and Practice for Supervisors' (Bye Law 5)
An accredited supervisor can supervise IAHIP members, pre-accredited and student associates and any other organisation that would accept you as a supervisor.
Group ratios – what is allowed?
Group supervision is of a duration equivalent to at least 30 minutes per supervisee. This does not imply that the time be allocated equally for individual presentations.
Group supervision takes place in a group usually consisting of four supervisees (or exceptionally in a larger group with more than four supervisees but which lasts for at least 30 minutes for each supervisee in the group).
Within peer or paired groups there must be a supervisor who is eligible to sign off on your supervision hours if these hours are being counted towards re-accreditation.
As a qualified or trainee supervisor can I deliver supervision online?
Yes, once your insurance covers you to do so.
What course should I do / is suitable for / accredited by IAHIP?
IAHIP doesn’t accredit supervision training courses. It is up to the applicant to ensure that the training they are undertaking fulfils the criteria specified in Bye Law 5e.
Can I talk to a member of the Supervision Committee in person?
No. It is not that we do not want to be helpful however our commitment to the committee is voluntary and we all have full professional and personal lives. In addition, we like to keep track of all communication with members and the most transparent way of doing this is via email. Email also allows us to give careful consideration to an issue and to consult with each other as a group. Phone calls risk inviting responses which are less reflective or which might elicit the unconscious bias of the individual responder.
What if my supervisor application is late?
Covered above, see What happens if my Supervision Accreditation lapses or if my supervision re-accreditation application is late?
I get supervision at work, will this count?
Assuming your supervisor isn't also your line manager then your supervsion will count as long as your supervisor is IAHIP accredited or from an organisation acceptable to IAHIP.
How long is my application form stored for?
5 years if the application is successful and 6 months if the application is unsuccessful.
How much supervision of my supervision do I need?
1• The applicant must meet the normal supervision requirements for their psychotherapy practice as laid down in BL1C 4.2.a (1 hour of supervision for 50 hours of client work [after first re-accreditation] at a minimum frequency of monthly)
2• Along with this BL5C (5) states: It is the responsibility of the applicant to contract with their supervisor to ensure that the supervision of their supervision practice is proportionate to the composition and complexity of the applicant's caseload.
3• Where the applicant's supervisor is the same for both psychotherapy and supervision practice, both parties much ensure that sufficient supervision is provided / received.
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