Supervision and Mentoring

Clinical supervision encompasses accountable practice, professional development, personal support, mediation, and advocacy.

Essentially, professional supervision provides process accountability for practitioners through the creation of a forum that facilitates critical reflective conversations concerning practitioners' knowing, decision-making and action in the course of their practice with clients and significant others. The purpose and raison d’être for supervision is to facilitate the best possible practice and practice outcomes.

The following six principles, should guide both practice and supervision:

• A clear philosophical framework which guides intervention
• Written policy guidelines for practice consistency
• Standardised intervention actions
• Regular monitoring of practice to ensure the practitioner avoids collusion
• Protection of the victim is central to any intervention
• Ongoing evaluation regarding safety and the achievement of the goals of the intervention.

The second theme, that of a professional social work culture is:

• concerned with ethical and professional practice standards
• based in an informed, intentional and integrated knowledge and skill base
• committed to the personal and professional development of the worker
• aims to achieve the rehabilitation through participation in appropriate treatment.

This theme creates challenges for workers in relation to their professional identity, role, practice philosophy, and use of power and authority. The effect of this theme is that staff emphasise their helping, therapeutic or problem solving role.

We are committed to enhancing practice in the social services. We provide supervision for a range of practitioners, group workers and new graduates. HMA staff also provide supervision to workers in the realm of community development and more general isues.