Publications from ODSW Social Work Supervsion | Seite 26

Dialogue Session: Dilemmas in Social Work Supervision and the Way Forward

Dialogue on “Dilemmas in Social Work
supervision and the way forward”
Panellists:
Professor Tsui Ming Sum
Hong Kong Polytechnic University
Department of Applied Social Sciences
Associate Professor Kieran B. O’Donoghue
Massey University
Head of School – School of Social Work
Dr Peace Wong Yuh Ju
Lecturer
National University of Singapore, Department of Social Work
Facilitated by:
Ms Lee Yean Wun
Principal Social Worker
Kampong Kapor Family Service Centre

Introduction
After a day of meaningful presentations by the keynote speakers and various workshops
led by local practitioners, participants at the seminar had the chance to interact with the 3
panellists, individuals who are deeply involved in the field of social work supervision. The
dialogu e session discussed the numerous dilemmas in social work and involved the
panellists sharing their perception regarding an appropriate way forward for supervision in
Singapore. The dialogue session was facilitated by Ms Lee Yean Wun, Principal Social
Worker from Kampong Kapor Family Service Centre.
Findings from the “My Perceptions of Supervision in Singapore” Survey (as at 16 May
2015)
To begin the dialogue, Ms Lee shared key findings that had been gathered from the “My
Perceptions of Supervision in Singapore” survey, which was completed by participants
prior to the seminar. The analysis of the results provided an interpretation of supervision
from the point of view of the participants and also helped to indicate where social work
supervision in Singapore was headed. The survey found that social workers recognised that
supervision has a key role in the field, with 99.2% of respondents stating that it was an
important area of social work practice. When asked about whether they were satisfied with
the supervision they received, about 54.5% indicated that they were satisfied with the
supervision they were receiving. With regards to quality supervision, only 16.3% of
respondents indicated that they were getting quality supervision. This highlighted that
there is a need to distinguish between quality and satisfaction. Although about half of the
respondents indicated that they were satisfied with the supervision they were receiving,
many did not believe that they were receiving quality supervision. Respondents were more
divided regarding their perception of their competency for supervision with 56.1% of
respondents believing they were competent and 21.1% of them disagreeing. In general,
respondents (95% - 98%) felt that more could be done for social work supervision and that
training would be useful.

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