This article originally appeared in the TIR Association Newsletter
In the subject of Applied Metapsychology, a case supervisor is someone trained and experienced who offers supervision to facilitators (practitioners) using TIR and other techniques with individual clients (viewers). This supervision consists of going over sessions together, further training the facilitator as needed, and of helping to formulate case plans that will effectively meet the client’s needs. There are three possibilities when it comes to case supervision in this context:
- A facilitator can be doing their own case planning and also setting an agenda from one session to the next
- Two people at the same level of training can provide assistance for each other
- Someone at a more advanced level of training can act as a case supervisor for another facilitator.
The last option is best from the point of view of expanding the knowledge of the facilitator, though we do not always have this luxury. If you find yourself doing your own case planning and agenda setting, from session to session, it’s a good idea to study case supervision within the Applied Metapsychology context so that you keep in mind the fact that you are occupying two important roles: facilitator and case supervisor.
Two people at the same level combining their knowledge to provide guidance for each other in peer supervision are going to be stronger than one person alone. In much the same way that a team made up of viewer and facilitator is much stronger in dealing with the viewer’s issues than the viewer would be alone, the team of facilitator and case supervisor bring more to the task of effectively dealing with a client’s case than the facilitator would alone. The strongest combination is a highly trained and experienced case supervisor working with facilitators to optimize their work with viewers (clients).
Facilitators want to help. It pains them to fail. Just as it is the facilitator’s job to keep the viewer engaged and succeeding in a session, it is the case supervisor’s job to keep the facilitators working under their supervision confident and doing well.
Here are some of the principles by which a case supervisor works to help bring about success for both viewers and facilitators:
- Assess the training level, experience and skill of the facilitator/practitioner
- Assess the state of the viewer’s case, both chronic and acute:
- Is the client ready for viewing (formal session work) or is consultation (formulating plans to carry out in life) on life issues needed first, or a combination of viewing and consultation?
- Is the viewer chronically overwhelmed or fragile?
- Is the viewer’s attention scattered, or are they able to focus well on one thing at a time?
- Is the viewer able to use many types of techniques, or limited lighter techniques?
- Carefully match viewers and facilitators. When possible assign fragile viewers to trusted, experienced facilitators.
- When in doubt, go lightly and choose techniques in which the facilitator is well-practiced.
- A resilient, experienced viewer will generally be more tolerant of facilitators of varying levels of skill, but you want to be sure to give them a facilitator who is capable of keeping pace with a fast viewer.
One of the most important considerations is not to let a facilitator flounder. Case supervisors need to provide frequent opportunities to get confusions sorted out, and to increase skills and knowledge. If a client proves too difficult for a particular facilitator, that client needs to get an appropriate referral and that the facilitator’s losses and confusions get cleaned up.
When a case supervisor and facilitator are working at a distance from each other, all of this takes more care and attention. As the number of qualified trainers and case supervisors increases in the world, the job will become easier. Working as a facilitator, a trainer or a case supervisor provides enormous satisfaction and scope for continual learning and expansion.