Support through storytelling: A journey of northern practitioner development

In the challenging mental health landscape of Northern British Columbia, a tale of connection unfolds - a narrative woven into the fabric of rural life that binds practitioners in a shared struggle for support. The complexities of care within this region, marked by the culmination of multiple health crises, have stressed the importance of centralizing practitioners as the protagonists within this story of social wellness. A need for meaningful clinical support has arguably never been greater, rising in response to the contextual needs of an often-isolated workforce, generally lacking specialized training in counselling processes. This story delves into the complex, fragile relationships that compose a Northern system of care, shaped by a unique socio-cultural climate and held in place by a tenuous thread. While acknowledging the scarcity of empirical evidence on the counselling experience in rural settings, this narrative draws on the value of engaging Northern practitioners’ voices in shifting supportive service delivery. In the quest for professional growth and competency, clinical supervision has materialized as a crucial collaborator in supporting professional practice, recognizing the invaluable position of developmental location in bridging the theory-to-practice divide. The following project seeks to redress these disconcerting discrepancies by providing an avenue to access and interpret helpers’ experiences, facilitating ongoing growth and development as conceptualized within an integrated developmental framework. Stories unfold as particularly salient means to aid this process of exploring practitioners’ developmental trajectories, fostering understanding, validating experiences, and unravelling complex elements of practice. This resource attempts to tap into this profound power of story to aid clinical supervisors in empowering practitioners, conceptualizing the process, and assisting helpers in navigating their nuanced narratives as they embark upon their journey of self-discovery in hopes of helping others.