Alaska Counseling Association

We need your help!!!

To better serve the counselors of Alaska we need to determine the need and interest in continuing education workshops outside the Anchorage area. If you have an opinion or thoughts on this matter please take this survey:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/W2HRRFC

AKCA wants to offer its members a chance to increase their visibility and business. To do this we want to list on the AKCA website, for everyone interested, their business name, description and contact information, which will then be searchable by the public. If you are interested in your business name and contact information being displayed to a wider audience please fill out the form included with your AKCA renewal packet with the information you want shown on the AKCA website.

 The focus of this blog will be clinical supervision. A classmate and I distributed surveys to professionals who were either currently clinical supervisors or students who are currently being supervised or had recently completed the supervision process. It was really interesting and useful to see what real people had to say about the supervision process. There is such a huge difference between written standards and ethical codes and what actually happens in real life clinical settings. A few of the surveys from students who were currently in internships said that heavy workloads and schedule conflicts with their supervisors often means that they will just have to grab ten minutes here or there to consult about cases or ethical dilemmas. This seems unacceptable; however you have to take into account that most counselors and mental health workers are overworked with an overwhelming caseload. Quality supervision falls to the wayside, simply because there is no time for a supervisor and supervisee to meet. network and supervision policies can make a world of difference in terms of employee turnover. If employees feel like they are being heard, that their concerns are valid and that their supervisors are there to support them, I can imagine that there would be lower rates of employee burnout. 

This is much what it is like at my current job. In theory, every employee has a weekly 30 minute meeting carved out of their schedule for supervision. However, in most cases meetings, trainings, vacations and other emergency situations interrupt or take precedence over this weekly supervision appointment. I about 18 months, I have had five different supervisors. There are monthly unit meetings where I feel I can address concerns or questions with my supervisor and collaborate with coworkers, but this certainly does not take the place of one-on-one supervision between me and my supervisor where I can form a trusting relationship with her and feel that I have a venue for addressing my personal concerns and dilemmas associated with my job. I think that supervision is necessary and integral to create a strong network of employees who are on the same page regarding job duties and ethical responsibilities. I also think that a strong supervisor

Also, when employees and supervisors have an open line of communication regarding clients and cases, there is more collaboration of ideas that can occur. This can directly impact client welfare, which should be at the forefront of human services worker’s priorities. I feel that supervisors should strive to incorporate quality one-on-one supervision time with each employee under their supervision, at least once a week. This is the goal of many supervisors, but I think it should become a mandatory requirement, not as a means for skill development and enhancement of their individual supervisees, but as a means to better meet the needs of clients. By making time to consult with supervisees often and with quality interactions, supervisors benefit their supervisee, their clients and also themselves by being able to see cases in the perspective of their employees which will help to keep their counseling skills active and strong. Often times, supervisors have not been actively counseling clients for many years after they have assumed supervisor duties. Being able to participate in client sessions, or go out into the field with their supervisee, allows the supervisor to actively use their counseling skills that may have been put on the back burner to being a supervisor.

In a clinical setting, client emergencies and work related daily duties often take priority over supervision. Employees rely heavily on their supervisor/supervisee relationship for support and collaboration. Supervisors that want workers who are on top of it, need to make sure that they are nurturing the relationship between supervisor and employee. If a supervisor is lacking in their skills as a supervisor, how can they expect their supervisee employees to perform to the best of their abilities?

-Emily, Graduate Student in Counseling Psychology”





Please take about 5 minutes of your time to answer a few questions about you interest in professional membership organizations.  Thanks!

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/S2K2GLH

Report From Our Annual Meeting, June 2010

In June, members of the Alaska Counseling Association got together to brainstorm how we want the organization to develop over the next year or two.  We took a look at the mission and developed a plan of action.  The draft is now available for comment.  Members, please let us know if there is a priority you believe we are missing.  Please also let us know if you are interested in helping with any of the proposed objectives.  We met as a board on Tuesday 8/10/10 to discuss and amend the plan, but will take comments for the remainder of the year.

DRAFT STRATEGIC WORK PLAN FOR AKCA (August 10, 2010)

The mission of the Alaska Counseling Association is to enhance the development of Alaskans throughout their lifespan, primarily by promoting access to the highest possible quality of counseling services.  This purpose shall be accomplished by the following means:

a) Provide general education for the general public regarding counseling services

1. Provide information on the website about the profession of counseling, including descriptions of the role of a counselor and how to find counseling services (by 6/30/2011)
2. Increase visibility of AKCA (on-going)

b) Support the professional competency of Alaskan counselors by providing relevant training

1. Continue high quality quarterly training (on-going)
2. Attempt annual conference  so that it is a money making venture (by December 2011)
3. Investigate the use of smart room or teleconferencing technology to provide one distance CEU option (by December 2011)
4. Provide one 3 city (Anchorage, Juneau, Fairbanks) training with the same trainer—this may be an alternate option to an annual conference (by December 2011)

c) Establish and maintain an ethical code of conduct for Alaskan counselors

1. Use Website to do an ethics blog (by June 30, 2011)
2. Begin dialogue around topics of distance therapy and rural issues  (Perhaps as part of a 3 city training event by December 2011)
3. Investigate ethical codes used by other rural states (by June 30, 2011)

d) Monitor and influence, when necessary, legislation which affects the Alaskan citizens’ access to the highest possible quality of counseling services

1. Develop Juneau contingent (by December 2011)
2. Use presidents’ group to track legislation(on-going)

e) Support the ethical development and competence of Alaska’s graduate students in counseling

1. Get an intern for AKCA (on-going)
2. Have a yearly welcome to the profession along with an annual retreat (by June 2011)
3. Increase member participation: try rotating meetings and using a survey monkey (on-going)
4. Improve communication with members and unlicensed new professionals (on-going)

The Alaska Counseling Association (AKCA) would like to introduce you to our new board members:  President Renee Georg, Vice President Anne Henry, Secretary Whitney Whitman and Treasurer Debra Russ.  Officers are elected to two year terms during a regularly scheduled Annual Meeting. Our last Annual Meeting included an election, and was held in October 2009. Our next election will be at the Annual Meeting in 2011.  All of us on the board this year are excited to work for you to keep your professional organization vital.  We would also like to thank previous board members Kaya Kade, JR Myers, Jeannette Lawson, and Deborra Fields for their service over the past several years.

Membership and Benefits

Membership in AKCA is based upon a calendar year, which means it is time to renew or to begin a connection with your statewide professional group.  A membership form is enclosed.  Currently we are only able to accept checks for membership dues.  And what does your $50 get for you?  Well aside from the knowledge that you are supporting education and advocacy for the counseling profession in Alaska, you receive a discount at all AKCA sponsored continuing education events.  You also gain the right to decide what the organization does, and the delight of networking with other AKCA members.

Continuing Education

AKCA sponsors opportunities to collect Continuing Education Units, on topics requested by the membership, which we offer at a budget conscious price.  A flyer is enclosed for our next CEU opportunity on “Men’s Sexual Behavior” to be held in Anchorage on Friday February 19, 2010.  On May 14, 2010 we will offer a workshop for 3 Ethics CEUs on the topic of “Staying Resilient in the Face of Ethical Dilemmas.”  Please contact any of us to discuss other workshop topics you would like to see.  Our 3rd quarterly training will be held in September 2010; we can also work to be sure topics you suggest are addressed at the annual conference.

For the past 2 years we have had great success combining our annual conference with the NASW-AK.  In 2010 our joint venture will be held in Fairbanks.  Plans are well underway to bring meaningful and exciting keynote speakers to the event.  Mark your calendars for October 6, 7 & 8, and look for requests for presentations for break out workshops to come available in mid-March.

AKCA is listed in the state statutes governing licensed professional counselors as the body that can approve CEU credits for educational events.  As a member of AKCA, you can have your presentations reviewed for CEU approval for free.  Non members pay a fee for the same service.  The process is simple and fairly quick.  E-mail Renee or Whitney for more information.

Collaboration and Communication

We have expanded our collaborative efforts over the past year by participating in a monthly Presidents’ Meeting.  The current presidents of AkAMFT, AK-PA and AKCA, meet with the director of NASW-AK to coordinate efforts between our groups.  Through this collaboration we can expand continuing education options and strengthen advocacy activities.
We generally send out one newsletter a year to update you on our activities and to remind you to become involved.  To get more frequent updates about meetings, activities, and upcoming events, find us on Facebook by searching “Alaska Counseling Association.” You can become a fan to see the latest information arriving in your Facebook news feed.
We share information about workshops on the list serve maintained by the Alaska Psychological Association.

Subscription options:

http://groups.google.com/group/akpa-mh

To post to the group:

Email to AKPA-MH@googlegroups.com

The list serve is a good point of contact to stay in touch with discussions about the counseling profession, and about other helping professions, in the state.
We are currently revamping our website so that it is more interactive.  We hope to have a place for members to post business and contact information.  Please do contact one of the board members if you have ideas about how a website would best serve your needs as a member.  Keep peeking at www.alaskacounseling.org over the next year to see how we progress.
Finally, Renee and Anne will be meeting with the State Licensing Board at their meeting on January 28, 2010.  Contact one of them if you would like to be sure an issue related to the LPC is discussed.

Thank you!

Our national organization, the American Counseling Association, has over 200 members from the state of Alaska.  We out number several states with larger populations of counselors.  By joining or rejoining the Alaska Counseling Association you are demonstrating your commitment to the profession, not only at the national level, but also here in our amazing state.  Thank you also for the work you do with and on behalf of your clients.