Hi I’m Adriana, a Clinical Therapeutic Intern at Mentor South Bay (a part of Sevita).
What led you to choose Sevita for your internship?
I was looking for a micro-outpatient internship with more clinical experience to balance out the macro learning I was doing in my MSW program at Salem state. I loved the community care emphasis that my supervisor included in her the description of Sevita when I interviewed.
When/how did you know you made the right decision to do your internship here?
When I heard classmates who are also doing clinical outpatient internships in other places speak about poor supervision or lack of supervision, that’s when I knew I chose the right internship. I have great supervisors and three built-in individual/group supervision with the option to add more. The internship support team here is amazing!!!
What are you most proud of from your work here so far?
I am most proud of building rapport and a therapeutic alliance with the very first people I served one-on-one. Also, I’m proud of the feedback I’ve been given that I approach the work from a social justice and equity lens.
What do you look forward to most about coming to work?
I look forward to feeling supported, and knowing that if I was lacking resources or felt stuck someone would be able to help me. I think especially as a student this means a lot.
How is your internship role helping set you up for success long-term?
It is prompting me to practice building a “person served” list by doing outreach, learning how to access and lean on my clinical supports, and how to balance a schedule of meetings and seeing people in the community, etc.
Can you share an example of how Sevita has helped you grow personally and professionally?
My supervisors at Sevita have empowered me to feel humanized as a therapist and provider by giving me supervision and space without judgement to hold the feelings and reactions I have felt toward new situations.
How is your work meaningful or rewarding?
My work is meaningful because in this world and political climate where human rights are under attack, it is critical for people to have a space to be open about how that is impacting them or just a space to claim that is theirs. I try to hold that space with them as their therapist because that's what I believe therapy is for. I see mainly youth, and I think these spaces are even more important for them as they are developing their internal narratives and values.
How do you bring your unique personality to your role or put your own stamp on what you do?
I come from a decolonial and person-centered mindset that is influenced by my identities as a queer, neurodivergent Latine person. Building on my experience from my internship last year at Wayside Youth and Family Services Equity Training Center, I practice building "community agreements" or what I call therapeutic agreements with my people served to ensure that they can take ownership of the therapeutic space we are collaborating on. The idea of Community Agreements is credited to the National Equity Project: https://www.nationalequityproject.org/tools/developing-community-agreements
Describe the support and programs you’ve experienced as an intern at the company.
I have felt supported and valued through the supervision and interactions I have had with team members in my location. My supervisors give me critical feedback and also affirm what I am doing well. The team asks me if I need support and offer me opportunities to shadow them. I have started shadowing a therapeutic group which led me to propose to my supervisor starting a group for next semester. The trainings are so diverse and helpful in growing my competency. I’ve also attended a couple of events: 1) an internship check-in that was so helpful and validating that I am doing well, and 2) I a group event where a leader in the company spoke to his experience and dedicated time to answer questions we had for him.
What advice would you give someone considering an internship at Sevita?
I would let them know that building a person served list can be frustrating and take some time due to scheduling conflicts and the holidays, etc., but it will happen in time.
When/how did you know you made the right decision to do your internship here?
When I heard classmates who are also doing clinical outpatient internships in other places speak about poor supervision or lack of supervision, that’s when I knew I chose the right internship. I have great supervisors and three built-in individual/group supervision with the option to add more. The internship support team here is amazing!!!
What are you most proud of from your work here so far?
I am most proud of building rapport and a therapeutic alliance with the very first people I served one-on-one. Also, I’m proud of the feedback I’ve been given that I approach the work from a social justice and equity lens.
What do you look forward to most about coming to work?
I look forward to feeling supported, and knowing that if I was lacking resources or felt stuck someone would be able to help me. I think especially as a student this means a lot.
How is your internship role helping set you up for success long-term?
It is prompting me to practice building a “person served” list by doing outreach, learning how to access and lean on my clinical supports, and how to balance a schedule of meetings and seeing people in the community, etc.
Can you share an example of how Sevita has helped you grow personally and professionally?
My supervisors at Sevita have empowered me to feel humanized as a therapist and provider by giving me supervision and space without judgement to hold the feelings and reactions I have felt toward new situations.
How is your work meaningful or rewarding?
My work is meaningful because in this world and political climate where human rights are under attack, it is critical for people to have a space to be open about how that is impacting them or just a space to claim that is theirs. I try to hold that space with them as their therapist because that's what I believe therapy is for. I see mainly youth, and I think these spaces are even more important for them as they are developing their internal narratives and values.
How do you bring your unique personality to your role or put your own stamp on what you do?
I come from a decolonial and person-centered mindset that is influenced by my identities as a queer, neurodivergent Latine person. Building on my experience from my internship last year at Wayside Youth and Family Services Equity Training Center, I practice building "community agreements" or what I call therapeutic agreements with my people served to ensure that they can take ownership of the therapeutic space we are collaborating on. The idea of Community Agreements is credited to the National Equity Project: https://www.nationalequityproject.org/tools/developing-community-agreements
Describe the support and programs you’ve experienced as an intern at the company.
I have felt supported and valued through the supervision and interactions I have had with team members in my location. My supervisors give me critical feedback and also affirm what I am doing well. The team asks me if I need support and offer me opportunities to shadow them. I have started shadowing a therapeutic group which led me to propose to my supervisor starting a group for next semester. The trainings are so diverse and helpful in growing my competency. I’ve also attended a couple of events: 1) an internship check-in that was so helpful and validating that I am doing well, and 2) I a group event where a leader in the company spoke to his experience and dedicated time to answer questions we had for him.
What advice would you give someone considering an internship at Sevita?
I would let them know that building a person served list can be frustrating and take some time due to scheduling conflicts and the holidays, etc., but it will happen in time.