Wicklund, Howe and O'Donnell. The dentists knew about Mrs. C.'s physical limitations and agreed to make the necessary accommodations to the parking lot and the office space where Mrs. Co would be working. Since accommodations required some construction work, part of the consultation involved managing the disruption to the practice and ensuring its effects were minimally experienced by staff and patients.
Consultation Steps
Before
To prepare for the consultation, I would create an outline of issues to be discussed with the principals of the dental practice. As has been shown, these issues would include employer benefits to hiring a person with a disability, sources for guidance to which the dentists could refer, and a discussion of the physical accommodations that would have to be made. I would contact the building management company to find out whether the practice would be responsible for soliciting bids for the parking lot and office modifications or if that was a matter handled by the company. I would find out if the management company already had an established list of contractors they used for this kind of work. I would contact one or more contractors, depending upon requirements of the management company, to get some rough cost estimates for the parking lot and office renovation so that I could present that information to the dentists at the consultation. I would also find out from the management company how they planned to notify other tenants in the building of the proposed changes to the parking lot. I would have to determine whether the management company would handle all matters pursuant to the changes or whether they expected the dental practice to have any role in these actions.
During
During the consultation, I would discuss benefits, accessibility and compliance, disability prevention, and disability management. The consultation would include a detailed inspection of the physical space. I would answer questions raised during the consultation and note any and all questions requiring further...
The dentists were confident in Mrs. C.'s abilities to do the work required of her in the office. Their concerns were with respect to the costs of necessary changes to the parking lot and office space and any tax benefits associated with the renovation. I would provide this information during our meeting.
We would also discuss the best way to implement physical changes with minimum disruption to the practice and other tenants in the building. Before the consultation, I would have spoken to the management company about the parking lot and would have the information I needed to communicate to the dentists about their role in making changes and associated expenses. We would determine during the consultation the best time for construction work to take place in the office
After
After the consultation, I would provide to the consultees a written report summarizing the meeting. The report would include my recommendations, a list of resources, and answers to questions raised during the consultation that were not answered at the time. The consultant's report should consolidate the information needed by the practice to make an informed decision about hiring a person with disabilities.
References
Brigman, G., & Webb, L. (2008). An individual psychology approach to school counselor
Consultation. Journal of Individual Psychology, 64 (4), 506-515.
Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database.
Pransky, G.S., Shaw, W.S., Franche, R., & Clarke, a. (2004). Disability prevention and communication among workers, physicians, employers, and insurers -- current models and opportunities for improvement. Disability & Rehabilitation, 26 (11), 625-634.
Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database.
Sabatino, C. (2009). School social work consultation models and response to intervention: A
perfect match. Children & Schools, 31 (4), 197-206.
Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database.
