Quote:
Originally Posted by feralkittymom
Yeah, I'm not afraid to say "no," but I accept, especially in a therapy situation, some would be and shouldn't be put in that position. But observation is a core part of US medical training. If you live in an area where all the available hospitals are teaching hospitals, it is a common practice. You can theoretically decline, but the system is by default set up to make that a more difficult choice. It's a bit like subscription services in which the default is to automatically renew, rather than re-subscribe; you can cancel, but you have to make an affirmative choice to decline. I do think it should be the other way around in all these situations. But there is also an element of public good in these situations in which we all have a stake in the future sustainability of well-trained professionals. So I pick and choose: if it's a low risk circumstance with minor risk to my privacy and comfort, I agree; if the nature of the procedure is high risk, I decline.
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This is very nicely put. I was going to say something similar, but couldn't articulate it.
There have been times in my therapy - when talking about trauma or something especially sensitive - when I would absolutely not want a stranger sitting in, and even the request would offend and upset me. But less intense sessions, when all we're discussing is some CBT skill or something, I would allow a student to sit in. Shadowing other professionals is, I think, an excellent way to be trained, and I would feel much better about seeing a T who had this training than one who, for instance, had only done mock sessions with other students.