Ethical Considerations in Clinical Supervision: Components of Effective Clinical Supervision Across an Interprofessional Team
BCBAs need explicit inter-professional supervision skills, and this paper hands you the checklist.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Lindblad (2021) wrote a how-to paper. No new data. Just clear advice.
The paper lists skills BCBAs need when they supervise teams that include speech, OT, psych, and nursing.
It also gives a shared ethics checklist the whole team can use when goals clash.
What they found
The main take-away: most BCBAs are never taught how to lead non-behavior staff.
The paper gives a short menu of teachable skills. Example: run a five-minute values poll before the first team meeting.
Another skill: write one shared goal that every discipline can hit in its own way.
How this fits with other research
Newhouse-Oisten et al. (2017) came first. They gave a four-step drug talk for BCBAs who work with prescribers. Lindblad widens the lens to any team, not just meds.
LaFrance et al. (2019) mapped where BCBA, SLP, OT, and psych scopes overlap. Lindblad turns that map into day-to-day supervision moves.
Snyder et al. (2024) then asked real BCBAs and school psychologists why they fight. The top answer: "We talk past each other." Lindblad’s shared ethics checklist is built to fix exactly that.
Light-Shriner et al. (2025) surveyed school BCBAs and found most had zero collaboration training yet still worked with five other jobs daily. Lindblad’s paper gives supervisors the missing lesson plan.
Why it matters
If you supervise RBTs who share a hallway with teachers, nurses, or SLPs, you now have a ready-made skill list. Pick one competency—like the five-minute values poll—and teach it at your next group supervision. You will cut confusion before it starts.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Within the practices of behavior analysis, education, occupational therapy, physiotherapy, speech-language pathology, and other health professions, professional practice focuses on each discipline’s ethics, assessment, and treatment practices. However, maximizing outcomes for some clients is achieved only by combining the strengths of multiple disciplines to include all the competencies required for comprehensive client care. Thus, understanding and acquiring the core competencies for working collaboratively within an interprofessional framework is essential for working together effectively to garner the best outcomes for clients. Furthermore, the interprofessional team clinical supervisor has the added responsibility of ensuring optimal client outcomes while managing a diverse group of professionals, each with their own set of perspectives, clinical training, and evidence-based practices. In many areas of applied practice, the behavior analyst assumes the role of interprofessional clinical supervisor, which necessitates additional training in collaboration, supervision of allied professionals, and ethics. Successful interprofessional and collaborative working relationships require a number of key competencies and subcompetencies as outlined by the Interprofessional Education Collaborative, as well as knowledge of others’ ethical and professional codes and/or guidelines for professional conduct, along with additional training and resources in the navigation and handling of ethical dilemmas among disparate team members. Working together and maintaining professional relationships within an interdisciplinary team are fraught with barriers and issues that may impede collaboration. The interprofessional team clinical supervisor requires various strategies, processes, and resources to enable them to navigate challenges and assist the team in working cohesively to achieve more positive client outcomes.
Behavior Analysis in Practice, 2021 · doi:10.1007/s40617-020-00514-y