The Virtual Bug: Online Live Supervision of Telemental Health Counseling

The Online Live Supervision of Telemental Health Counseling (OLSTHC) model described here was born as a response to the changes imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic to our counseling training program, particularly our practicum and internship experiences. The purpose of this article is for the authors to present the OLSTHC model as a template for the implementation of counseling training, live supervision, and counseling services in a virtual environment. In this paper, the authors present the basic supervision-related concepts that are involved in the model. Based on their experience implementing the model, the authors describe next the model’s development context, logistical considerations, technology and communication needs, administrative requirements, and clinical recommendations. Finally, some ethical, multicultural, as well as future research considerations in the implementation of OLSTHC are provided. The incorporation of technology in live supervision has evolved from closed-circuit camera observations of adjacent rooms and communication with the supervisee via telephone, the use of a bug-in-the-ear system (Boylston & Tuma, 1972), the incorporation of visual or text-based supervisor-supervisee communication or bug-in-the-eye (Klitzke & Lombardo, 1991; Machuca et al., 2016; Miller et al., 2002; Neukrug, 1991; Scherl & Haley, 2000; Smith et al., 1998), to a fully online live supervision and counseling experience that combines, voice and text communication as well as live interaction between the supervisor, the supervisee, and the client (Nadan et al., 2020). The model presented here represents the integration of online live supervision and telemental health counseling into a comprehensive learning experience facilitated by the use of technology.