What is clinical supervision for research?
Back in 2010, I worked as a Research Assistant on a busy, multicentre clinical trial investigating the efficacy of an augmenting agent for antidepressants. Part of my role involved advertising the study to potential participants, and then carrying out the assessments, clinical interviews, and processing and analysing the data. I was inviting people with long, chronic experiences of depression to take part in the research. I loved this role and stayed right until the study was finished. Ultimately I enjoyed working with people – meeting them, hearing their stories and life experiences, and hopefully helping them in some way on this journey in their recovery.
However, I noticed along the way that I was also starting to experience low mood, and I found that there wasn’t really a dedicated space for me to use and have my own feelings and reactions contained in some way. Whilst I received excellent research supervision and on the whole I felt supported, there wasn’t anyone who could really help me understand and process the upsetting nature of the stories and life experiences that I was hearing from the people taking part in the study.
Fast forward a few years and now I work as a qualified clinical psychologist. Now, with hindsight, I know what I was missing and what I might have benefited from, had I had specific clinical supervision in addition to the research supervision.
I believe research is key to advancing clinical psychology as a field. Much of the ‘on the ground’ / grafting that happens in research studies (particularly in Psychology) are carried out by more junior members of staff who may or may not have received any clinical training or supervision. As a clinician, I understand and recognise the importance of having my own regular clinical supervision as a space for me to process and understand what happens in the therapy space. Why shouldn’t this happen in research studies that are clinical in nature?
I believe it should. A couple of years ago, I worked as a University Lecturer in Psychology and with the help of a fantastic BSc Psychology student, we carried out some research asking these very questions – what were researchers’ experiences of carrying out research into mental health and did they feel that clinical supervision was needed or could be valuable? The results were telling – this was something that was lacking and researchers were feeling the need for it. This research is yet to be published (stay tuned) but I am even more convinced that a space is needed to help mental health researchers understand and process their own thoughts, feelings, reactions, and behaviours when working in clinical research.
I offer clinical supervision for researchers working at Universities, NHS or other health settings, and in private practice. I can offer a regular or one-off slot to suit your individual and team needs. Sessions will be offered remotely and for up to 1 hour at a time.
Please get in touch if you want to have an initial discussion to see if a regular or one-off clinical supervision space could be useful for you.
Dr Kate Williams-Markey, Clinical Psychology Services 