Supervision for those in other roles and professions
Whilst non-managerial supervision (sometimes called professional consultative support) is an obligation for counsellors and psychotherapists, other professions do not generally require it. This means that many people working in jobs involving a high level of human relating receive minimal support to explore the rewards, costs, and complexities of the work as well as reflecting on issues that may be challenging on a personal or organisational level. Sometimes a lack of this kind of support can lead staff to experience lower levels of engagement in work, reduced effectiveness, less satisfaction, and increasing stress leading ultimately to 'burnout' ('hardness of heart or sadness of soul' as the writer Ted Bowman puts it).
Supervision of this kind offers a regular opportunity to talk confidentially with an understanding, encouraging, accepting, yet challenging person in order to support oneself and to develop work effectiveness, sustainability, work-life balance, and personal satisfaction. It can be helpful in keeping open a sustaining connection with the values and beliefs that brought you into your work in the first place. It can be helpful for people working in various roles including but not limited to, health and social care, complementary therapy, education, emergency services, religious and pastoral ministry, management, personnel work, and political life.
British miners in the 1920s fought for what was termed ‘pit-head’ time – the right to wash off the grime of the work in the boss’s time, rather than take it home with them. Supervision is the equivalent for those who work at the coalface of personal distress, disease and fragmentation.’ Hawkins & Shohet