HEC-approved clinical supervision
Structured, case-based supervision for MPhil and PhD psychology students and practising mental health professionals, led personally by Prof. Dr Tahira Yousaf at the Psychological Help Centre, Karachi.
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What this is
Supervision is where a clinician's actual work is examined by someone more experienced than they are — the cases that are not going anywhere, the ones where something was missed, the ones where the clinician's own reaction is the thing that needs looking at. It is the part of clinical training that cannot be read.
PHC states that its clinical supervision programme is approved by the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan, and it is led personally by Prof. Dr Tahira Yousaf, who is an HEC-approved supervisor and has supervised postgraduate work at MPhil and PhD level for over twenty years. Participants work through complex case analysis, advanced therapeutic techniques and ethical practice.
What it is not. It is not a workshop, it is not a short course, and it is not a certificate you attend for. There is no curriculum you sit through and no examination at the end — the material is your own caseload, which is why nobody can tell you in advance what any given month will cover. It is also not therapy, though the difference is thinner than it sounds and any honest supervisor will tell you where the line is when you reach it.
How it works at PHC
- A conversation about your caseload firstBefore anything is arranged we ask what you are working on, at what level, under what requirement, and what has brought you looking. Supervision arranged without that conversation is supervision arranged around a timetable rather than around a clinician.
- Case-based sessionsThe material is real work. Complex case analysis, advanced therapeutic techniques and the ethical questions that come attached to both — formulation that is not holding, a client you have started to dread, a boundary that has moved without anyone deciding to move it.
- Structured, and documented where it has to beWhere your institution requires evidence of supervised hours, that is a requirement to state at the start rather than to raise at the end. Tell us what your university or your registration expects and we will tell you plainly whether we can meet it.
- Reviewed as it goesWhat supervision is for changes across a training year, and what is being worked on is revisited rather than assumed.
Who it is for, and who it is not for
It is for MPhil and PhD psychology students and for practising mental health professionals — people carrying real cases who need qualified oversight of them, whether because a programme requires it or because the work has reached the point where it is needed.
It is not for undergraduates looking for clinical exposure; that is what the internship programme is for, and it is a different thing with different entry requirements. It is not a substitute for your own therapy. And it is not a shortcut to a credential: what supervision produces is a record of supervised work, not a qualification.
One thing worth saying plainly, because people are too polite to ask. Supervision only works if you bring the sessions that went badly. A supervisee who brings their best cases is being supervised on the half of their practice that does not need it.
Who leads it
Supervision is led personally by Dr Tahira. That is the whole proposition of this page and it is also its constraint: one person's diary is finite, and availability is the first thing to ask about rather than the last.
PHC's Head of Training and Clinical Supervision is Samrah Abdul Rafey, Associate Clinical Psychologist and a permanent member of the clinical team.
Questions people ask first
Will this count towards my university's supervised-hours requirement?
Tell us what your university requires, in writing, before you begin. Requirements differ between institutions and between programmes, and the only responsible answer to this question is one given after reading yours rather than before. We would rather tell you we cannot meet it than have you find out at submission.
Is it individual or in a group?
Ask us when you enquire. Both formats exist in supervision generally and which is available depends on who is currently being supervised and at what level — it is a scheduling answer rather than a policy one.
I qualified years ago and I am not a student. Is this still for me?
Yes. Practising mental health professionals are explicitly part of who this is for, and coming back to supervision after years without it is a sign of a careful clinician rather than a struggling one.
Can supervision be done online?
Ask us. PHC runs clinical work online across Pakistan and internationally, and supervision by video is ordinary practice — but whether it is available on this programme, and in what mix with in-person sessions, is Dr Tahira's call and not a website's.
Where it runs
PHC PECHS. Plot 59A, Street 1 Rd, Shaheed-e-Millat Rohail Khand Society, Karachi 74800. Monday to Saturday, 10am to 8pm PKT. More about the branch → PHC's PECHS clinic.
Starting a conversation
Write to us at support@phchelps.com, or call or WhatsApp 0333 3736938, Monday to Saturday, 10am to 8pm PKT. A real person answers.
Tell us four things and we can answer properly
- Who you are and where you are training or practising
- What level you are at — MPhil, PhD, or qualified and in practice
- What your programme or registration requires, if anything
- Whether you would rather meet in clinic or online
If what you are looking for is a placement rather than supervision, the internship programme is the other page.
Students and practising professionals
Enquiries about clinical supervision or about an internship placement go to our contact page rather than to the booking page — you are not booking a session. Tell us your degree, your stage and what you are looking for.
If you are looking for an appointment rather than a placement or supervision, booking an appointment is the page you want.