Reflective Supervision Skills: Case study for giving constructive feedback and challenge.
Dianne is a part time children’s support worker, working in a children’s home which looks after 6 children with profound learning disabilities. She is also the chair of the school governors at the local special needs school. Dianne says that she loves to see the children happy and that it makes everything worthwhile when she does.
She finds it difficult to work with Mandy, who is 14 years old. Mandy has Cornelia de Lange syndrome;she is mobile, has limited verbal communication, global developmental delay, she is easily triggered into anxiety and when she is anxious can become aggressive. Mandy struggles with transitions and sometimes refuses to get dressed in the morning, making her late for the school transport.
You have observed that Dianne ‘fusses’ over the children, liking to touch them, and talking to them a lot. You have told her that Mandy needs clear and simple communication, but Dianne doesn’t seem able to reduce the amount she chatters to Mandy, and doesn’t pick up the non-verbal cues that indicate that Mandy is beginning to get agitated.
It has been a difficult morning for Mandy, (and the staff). Mandy refused to get dressed and at one point ran around the home naked. The school transport had to be postponed several times. Dianne was part of the shift, and had been asked to work 1 to 1 with Mandy for short periods during the morning, as part of a rotation of staff, which was a strategy for working with Mandy when she became aggressive and targeted particular workers.
Afterwards you overheard Dianne complaining to other staff about having to work with Mandy, saying that she didn’t like Mandy’s attention seeking behaviour, and the way staff were told to give her 1 to 1 attention so much of the time, as it prevented the other children from getting attention, who would appreciate it more. She said that she didn’t think the home was able to manage Mandy and that she should live somewhere more specialised.
You are now having a supervision session with Dianne and want to help her to learn how to stay calm and give simple clear verbal prompts, and reassurance, to help Mandy stay or become calm.
You have already asked Dianne to talk about the morning, you have used open questions and active listening to draw her out and she has expressed the same views to you that you overheard her sharing with staff. You have conveyed acceptance of her feelings and empathised with how difficult it can be to look after Mandy and to feel you are getting anywhere with her. Now, how will you constructively challenge her views and practice?
10 mins to practice in threes, 1 being Dianne and 1 being the supervisor, 1 being the witness.
You will be asked for feedback.