0622 - Group Supervision: Transforming Your Practice Through Collective Growth

Course Description

Hours: 12

Group supervision is a powerful catalyst for growth, resilience and professional development across social work and other helping professions. It creates a dynamic space where diverse perspectives come together, helping to combat practitioner isolation, deepen clinical insight and strengthen ethical decision-making (Bernard & Goodyear, 2019). Grounded in evidence-based models, group supervision empowers clinicians to collaboratively navigate complex cases with greater confidence, creativity and accountability. It is also an attractive option for organizations, offering a cost-effective way to support multiple staff members while enhancing quality of care, staff retention and ethical integrity.

Over the course of this two-day Professional Development course, we will explore group supervision models and how they create supportive spaces for processing the emotional impact of trauma work. Group supervision fosters safety and connection while inviting deeper engagement with post-traumatic growth and vicarious resilience – the ways clinicians can evolve and draw strength from their clients’ healing journeys (Tedeschi & Calhoun, 2004; Hernandez et al., 2007). This shared reflection helps renew purpose, reduce burnout and sustain the empathy and stamina essential for long-term, trauma-informed care.

We will also examine how group supervision provides a foundation for exploring use of self and maintaining ethical boundaries. Through guided reflection and peer feedback, clinicians deepen self-awareness by examining how personal values, emotional triggers and relational patterns influence their work. When approached intentionally, this process transforms self-awareness into a tool for accountability rather than risk (Reamer, 2018), strengthening ethical clarity and helping prevent boundary violations in complex clinical situations.

Participants will also explore differences in outcomes across voluntary group supervision, agency-mandated supervision and paid supervision models, considering how power dynamics, expectations and psychological safety influence participation and learning.

You will leave this course with practical strategies for designing and facilitating group supervision sessions, reflective handouts that can be used directly within your own group supervision contexts, and an Informed Consent Form template that can be adapted for group supervision settings. In today’s demanding clinical landscape, effective group supervision is more than a support tool – it is a vital practice for sustaining ethical, reflective and resilient helping professionals.

Notes

Time Zone: All listed class times are held in ET (Ontario, Canada)

For more information contact the Faculty of Social Work Professional Development office:

Email: fswprofessionaldevelopment@wlu.ca
Phone: 548-889-4967

Cancellations and Transfers
Be sure to carefully review our cancellation and transfer information before registering.

Website: wlu.ca/fswpd

Applies Towards the Following Certificates

• Clinical Supervision Certificate : Clinical Supervision