Social Workers and Ending Skills

.....ending skills. Ending skills allow social workers to successfully conclude working relationships with clients (Cournoyer, 2013, p. 477). Ending skills comprise of reviewing the process, a final evaluation, saying goodbye and sharing ending emotions, and finally recording closing summary (Cournoyer, 2013). Along with the ending skills, the author includes the four most common kinds that are referral, transferal, client discontinuation, and termination. The client discontinuation form differs from the others in that it is exclusively client initiated.

Although it may seem simple to end a working relationship with a client, it may be difficult to accomplish because of the varying factors that comprise a working relationship. Just like ending a personal relationship, a working relationship may bring up feelings of loss and sadness, along with a myriad of other emotions. From the clients' perspective, the reactions may be even more intense. Clients share their personal lives, and at times make progress thanks to the assistance, feeling like they cultivated an environment of safety and vulnerability.

Such outcomes make facing the reality of never having contact again hard to accept. For some clients, they may feel as though they lost a best friend or confidant. Others may respond with anger or denial. Regardless of their reaction, exploration of these responses makes up a significant part of the ending process. This is where the chapter transitions to the next phase of the ending process, 'Reviewing the Process' and invites clients to share any progress made, any significant events/exchanges.

This is the phase where both parties can truly reflect on what was accomplished or not and see how such moments make both parties feel. Even if little progress was made, it is always important to see what was missed or what needs improvement to grow and develop. While this step is important, it is more important to highlight the strengths and highlights of the sessions to provide a foundation in the future for potential growth/progress.

This can be done through expressing pleasure in relation to any positive changes the client underwent. Going back to examining all sides to the sessions, if the client does not make any progress, or still has issues to resolve, this would also be appropriate to reflect on to enable awareness for the client for what needs to be done working with someone else. The main goal for the use of ending skills to enable clients to continue working towards making progress and addressing their concerns.

Evaluation is an important and cooperative process that requires both parties to assess and reflect on what has happened to make way for a more productive future for the client. Even though ending skills are client-centered, one can also seek feedback to ensure appropriate actions were taken during sessions. This is because grown and development can also come from the professional perspective, ensuring the client and the professional improve. Being a social worker comes with may difficulties in understanding the needs of the clients.

Through seeking evaluative feedback, the social worker gains valuable information that can be used towards helping existing and future clients. Page 486 of the book discusses sharing ending feelings and saying goodbye. This brings back the potentially intense feelings described in.