Peer Consultation: An Enriching Necessity Rather Than a Luxury for Psychologists During and Beyond the Pandemic

Abstract

The pandemic increased professional and personal demands on psychologists, resulting in higher levels of burnout and clinician isolation (Aafjes-van Doorn et al., 2020;Shklarski et al., 2021). Meanwhile, professional consultation is less available due to remote work and social distancing (Sasangohar et al., 2020). Without adequate consultation, psychologists' burnout and isolation may impair their ability to provide quality clinical care (Maslach & Leiter, 2016). Limited literature focuses on how to support psychologists during this unprecedented time. We discuss assessment tools to identify needs for peer consultation and effective consultation group strategies. Our case example of a peer consultation group demonstrates how peer consultation can support psychologists and mitigate the unique challenges throughout the pandemic.

A brief intervention helps to reduce equity gaps in graduate school knowledge among psychology students.

“…Today, there is a growing need for institutions to develop initiatives that support the career development of psychology undergraduates with plans of pursuing advanced degrees. For psychology, this is critically important as many employers seek candidates with experience in mental and behavioral health, especially after a global pandemic (Miu et al, 2022). Although many psychology majors are interested in pursuing a career in helping professions (e.g., clinical psychology, counseling, etc.…”