Social work principles and practice

Social Work Exercises

Preparing for 3 Clients

Mrs. Nancy Cannon telephoned from her place of work ( the Capital Insurance Company -- phone [HIDDEN] She sounded concerned. She said that on the previ-ous Saturday night, her 14-year-old daughter Amy had come home after her 9: 00 p. m. curfew, smelling of alcohol. She says that she " grounded" her daughter but now wants to talk with a social worker about the situation. Mrs. Cannon requested an appointment for herself alone, indicating that she wanted to sort things out with someone before she dealt further with her daughter.

Mrs. C. reported that this was the first such incident. She said, " I've never had any trouble whatsoever from Amy. She's been a wonderful child." She stated that she had not sought pro-fessional help before and that this was her first contact with any social service or mental health agency. She indicated that her husband, Amy's father, had recently filed for divorce and had left the home approximately 6 weeks ago. Mrs. C. wondered whether that might be connected with Amy's misbehavior over the weekend. Disposition: An appointment was scheduled with an agency social worker for tomorrow at 12: 00 noon. Mrs. C. requested a lunch- hour appointment, if at all possible, to reduce the amount of time away from her job.

Clearly, there are issues from the divorce that may be upsetting Amy. She may be having trouble dealing with her feelings and thus self-medicating with the use of alcohol. She may also be trying to seek attention by staying out past curfew and getting herself into trouble.

7.2

How old are the youngest children?

Are they documented immigrants or illegal aliens?

Do they have insurance for the automobile?

I would seek out whether or not a social worker could assist much with undocumented immigrants. If not, I would look for other charitable agencies in the area that might be able to help if I am limited in what I could do.

7.3

I would look for agency services directly in her area, including retirement homes, outpatient care services, and other services geared towards helping elderly adjust to life. I would first look to see if Mrs. Anderson has any children that could help make decisions on her behalf in order to prevent anything from happening to her while she is home alone. I would also ask my supervisor how to handle the situation if it does turn out that she is not in good health, meaning if she does not come to the door, what rights would I have in getting her door open in order to check on her.

First, I would look for programs helping secure jobs for veterans, since Mr. Gains served in the Gulf War. Thus, I would check with the Office of Veteran Affairs for any job assistance programs that have some employment opportunities in his field of experience. Then, I would also search for credible material on how war impacts people. I would want to discuss with Mr. Gains any lasting negative impacts of the war that may still be affecting him and his job search today. I would research signs and symptoms of PTSD to rule out a potential diagnosis.

7.4

I would take some extra time to move some of the file cabinets to create a space that is separate from my work colleague. The discussion of Mr. Somes' wife is very sensitive, and I need to make sure that he feels comfortable in a space that is designated just for the two of us. If I could not effectively arrange the room so that it feels like a separate space, I would ask my colleague to step out for the time of the appointment, explaining the sensitivity of the situation.

7.5

If I were in the shoes of the parents, I would probably feel scared, angry, and possibly even a little bit responsible. Their son is so young, but now he has a short lease on life because of his diagnosis. His entire world is going to change, as he will have to endure medical treatments for his condition constantly. The stress of watching their son deteriorate in front of them is going to be overwhelming. I do not have any children, so it may be difficult for me to understand just how painful this is going to be. Moreover, the parents may not be able to trust my help because I am so young and have never undergone anything like what they are going through today.

7.6

It is going to be difficult for me to work with Cathy's father because of the prolonged abuse he put his young daughter through. I know I will have to put aside my own feelings in order to make a proper decision about him potentially benefitting from counseling services, but this will definitely be difficult. Having worked with children in the past and seen what abuse can do to them long-term, it is a hard thing to get over. However, I will have to discuss the situation without getting emotional and work with Cathy's father without allowing my own bias to interfere.

7.7

I would have to take a moment to breathe and clear my head. My own frustration about the fact I id not get a raise should not interfere with the well being of my upcoming client. I would remind myself that I am in this field not for the monetary benefits, but for the joy of helping real people with real problems. I would tell myself that this is a testing moment; I either need to center myself and help those in need, or stop altogether.