Deep Empathy in Care: Integrating an Ethical Trauma - Responsive Framework into the Supervisory Relationship

September 30, 2026 12:45 PM - 4:00 PM ET

Presented by Lee Westgate, MSW, MBA, LCSW-C

This program has been approved for 3 Continuing Education hours in Supervision.

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As helping professionals, we carry many individuals and families through life's traumas. Through this provision of care and support, we simultaneously collect the stories of countless people and communities we serve. This component of trauma-responsive practice creates a unique burden resulting from deep empathy – magnified by our collective professional and ethical orientation to social justice. Leaders and providers alike remain in the unique position of having to simultaneously lead, mentor, and effectively navigate and make sense of the sometimes-traumatic nature of social work practice. This educational session seeks to illustrate the impact of trauma on supervisors and supervisees; highlight the role of self-reflection in implementing supporting practice; and provide insights and reflections on self-stewardship and trauma-responsive practice within the context of clinical and organizational leadership.

Learning Objectives:

• Examine the ethical context of trauma and social work across a myriad of levels of practice.
• Distinguish between Trauma-Informed and Trauma-Responsive Social Work Practice.
• Reflect the paradoxes embedded in supervision and trauma-responsive practice.
• Identify strategies and opportunities to integrate a trauma responsive framework within the context of leadership and supervision.