The Taxback Group supports Karin Dom’s professional supervisions program
Interview with Zhenislava Sapundzhieva – Director of the “Children and Families Services Centre” and Trainer at the Karin Dom Foundation.
Karin Dom was founded in 1996 and Zhenislava is working with its team since day one. She currently manages the Social Rehabilitation & Integration Services in the Early Intervention Centre. She has been involved in the Department of Early Intervention since 2011. She ensures a family-orientated approach in all of the services that they provide to the families with children with special needs.
We talked to Zhenislava about Karin Dom`s brand new project, called Professionals supervisions program, that helps their specialists to deal with specific emotions and stressful situations that arise in the process of working with children with special needs.
What’s the purpose of the professional supervision of Karin Dom’s specialists?
The daily work with clients, parents, colleagues, and different institutions can bring on a wide variety of emotions. Our professionals need a special place and time where they can share what they have experienced throughout the day. This is done through both individual and group supervision sessions. All professionals working with children and people with special needs should be able to express their thoughts and emotions in a safe and confidential environment. Professional supervision is a positive and enabling process that allows them to take control of their emotions and reflect on their work practice. The process can also provide answers to any questions that may arise.
What impact has the professional supervision sessions had on the employees to date?
As a result of the professional supervision program, my colleagues and I can get a better picture of our emotions and look at how our job affects us. The program also encourages us to put ourselves into different scenarios and look at situations from the perspective of children with disabilities, their families and the institutions. As a matter of fact, each supervision session is tailored and has its own, specific goal. These goals depend on the different situations that we encounter, and the person that we are supervising.
The greatest outcome that we have achieved so far is that people’s ability to understand and deal with different temperaments has improved, which has in turn improved their ability to prevent and resolve any problems that may arise. The emotional support and advice available to our colleagues is vital in maintaining the high quality of service that we provide to the children and families that avail of Karin Dom’s services.
How important are programs like this in achieving better work-life balance and preventing burnout?
They’re undoubtedly very important. Thanks to the professional supervision program, each individual can define their own working style that incorporates their personal qualities, their theoretical knowledge and their experience. In this job, it can be incredibly difficult to separate your emotions from your work and professionals often feel angry, sad, and even depressed, all of which can lead to them becoming burnt out. The professional supervision program is the tool that helps our specialists to deal with their negative emotions, while enabling them to express their emotions in a safe and confidential environment.
Zhanina, you are also working as a specialist in Karin Dom. What in your daily work motivates you the most?
Working in Karin Dom is an honour for each and every one of us. The satisfaction that we get from supporting the children and their families is what motivates us the most. We can see the positive impact that we have in the results from the children’s therapy. Constantly expanding our knowledge and skills through various conferences and events is what keeps us “hungry” for improvement. The combination of our daily professional supervisions with teamwork and a great work environment helps us to achieve the right balance between our professional and personal lives.