Describe a problem that the community is currently experiencing. Assess the duration, intensity, and frequency of the problem.

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The purpose of this assignment is to broaden your understanding of a community, develop analytical skills regarding communities in relation to specific populations and their needs, and to better plan and develop interventions to address issues and problems facing the community.

This assignment has three parts: Part I Understanding Your Community, where you will consider the current demographics of the community and analyze how that has changed over the past 20 years; Part II Community Assessment, where you assess your community and a problem within your community; and Part III Community Action Plan, where you develop a specific action plan to address the problem you identified. As you reflect on the learning resources and concepts from Weeks 1-4, be sure to explain what you have learned about the policy’s effect on various groups (human trafficking). Consider how will this knowledge assist you with your community action plan.

Community: Atlanta, GA

Submit a 4-6 page paper. The paper needs to be well-researched and written using APA guidelines. Data should come from at least five sources.

Part I: Understanding your Community
  • Analyze how your community has changed over the past 20 years. Use policy and community concepts and theories from the learning resources to support your analysis.
  • Describe your community, using research and statistics to describe socio-demographic make-up. (For example: How many persons live in the city and/or in the town? What were/are their cultural/racial characteristics? What were/are their incomes, ages, political affiliations, etc.?)
Part II: Community Assessment
  • Describe a problem that the community is currently experiencing.
    • Assess the duration, intensity, and frequency of the problem.
    • Analyze the probable etiology of the problem, supporting your analysis with resources.
  • Analyze the key elements and characteristics of the community that make it vulnerable to this problem.
  • Analyze the key strengths of the community that give the community resilience and the potential for overcoming the problem.
  • Identify major institutions (e.g., schools, factories, churches, attraction sites, etc.) and explain how these institutions contribute to or inhibit the community’s ability to address the problem?
  • Explain which groups are most affected by the problem.
Part III: Community & Policy Action Plan
  • Describe your proposed plan for community change.
  • Explain the strategies and tactics you would you use to bring about change. Consider if you would need multiple strategies, and if so, explain which strategy would be used for each target.
  • Explain any policies that may influence the ability, either supportive or prohibitive, to influence proposed community change.
  • Explain what policies would need to be in place to ensure proposed plans are sustainable.

https://ctb.ku.edu/en/assessing-community-needs-and-resources

Explain your interpretation of what occurred in the dialogue, including social work practice theories, and explain how it might relate to diversity or cultural competence covered this week.

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Week 6: Legal Considerations

Important Note: Please use the media player below to hear an audio course introduction that will give you more background information about the course topic. Also provided is a transcript for you to download and print out.

Laureate Education. (Producer). (2013). Legal considerations [Audio file]. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu

Note:  The approximate length of this media piece is 1 minute.

Accessible player –Downloads–Download AudioDownload Transcript

Learning Objectives

Students will:
  • Apply legal considerations in field education experience
  • Analyze challenges in adhering to legal considerations during field education experience
  • Analyze diversity in relation to social work practice
  • Analyze cultural competence in relation to social work practice
  • Apply social work practice skills

Learning Resources

Required Readings

Garthwait, C. L. (2017). The social work practicum: A guide and workbook for students (7th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
Chapter 13, “Legal Issues” (pp. 148-158)

Required Media

Laureate Education. (Producer). (2013). Legal considerations [Audio file]. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu

Note:  This audio introduction is located in the “Introduction and Objectives” section. The approximate length of this media piece is 1 minute.

Optional Resources

Click the following link to access the MSW home page, which provides resources for your social work program.

MSW home page

Assignment 1: Week 6 Blog

Refer to the topics covered in this week’s resources and incorporate them into your blog.

By Day 3

Post a blog post that includes:

  • Any legal considerations during your field education experience that you may have had to address or that you might address
  • An explanation of potential challenges in adhering to legal considerations during your field education experience
By Day 4

Respond to the blog post of three colleagues in one or more of the following ways:

  • Validate an idea in your colleague’s post with your own experience.
  • Share an insight from having read your colleague’s posting.

Be sure to support your blog posts with specific references to this week’s resources and provide full APA citations for your references. For more information about posting your blog assignment, click on the Field Education Blogs link on the course navigation menu.

Submission and Grading Information
Grading Criteria

To access your rubric:
Week 6 Assignment 1 Rubric

Post by Day 3 and Respond by Day 4

To participate in this Assignment:
Week 6 Assignment 1

Assignment 2: Process Recordings

A process recording is a written tool used by field education experience students, field instructors, and faculty to examine the dynamics of social work interactions in time. Process recordings can help in developing and refining interviewing and intervention skills. By conceptualizing and organizing ongoing activities with social work clients, you are able to clarify the purpose of interviews and interventions, identify personal and professional strengths and weaknesses, and improve self-awareness. The process recording is also a useful tool in exploring the interpersonal dynamics and values operating between you and the client system through an analysis of filtering the process used in recording a session.

For this Assignment, you will submit a process recording of your field education experiences specific to diversity and cultural competence.

The Assignment (2–4 pages):

  • Provide a transcript of what happened during your field education experience, including a dialogue of interaction with a client.
  • Explain your interpretation of what occurred in the dialogue, including social work practice theories, and explain how it might relate to diversity or cultural competence covered this week.
  • Describe your reactions and/or any issues related to your interaction with a client during your field education experience.
  • Explain how you applied social work practice skills when performing the activities during your process recording.

Response 1

Alysia Barkster  at Wednesday, October 2, 2019 9:14:51 PM

Interning at a mental health agency, liability often comes into play due to the client’s not always being able to advocate for themselves and having to place many of their life decisions in the hands of the agencies staff. Within the last two weeks of field placement, myself and my supervisor remained in contact with a  potential client as she was awaiting approval to enter services. During this time, the client struggled to manage her mental health. It was apparent during conversations she required psychiatric and crisis stabilization services. Due to being mandated reporters, we believed it was our duty to follow up with the client and ensure she received the attention that she needed at that time. If the client whom we were in contact with daily did not seek crisis services independently, a phone call to the crisis stabilization services and her emergency contact would have been made, as we also have a signed authorization from the client to do so. This client we believe was on the verge of suicide or self harm. As mentioned (Garthwait, 2017), expresses the duty of the professional to prevent a client’s suicide, placing the professional at risk for liability and legal consideration. As mentioned of being mandated reports, my field placement has direct contact with adults that live within assisted living facilities. It is the duty of the professional to report misconduct and mistreatment of clients by other residents, staff, and including our agencies staff.

Social workers among other staff must follow laws and policies to maintain the functionality of the agency. The client within my field placement as the right to make informal and formal grievances regarding any treatment or lack thereof to be questioned by the agency management. The client also has the right to receive an advocate to properly make such grievances in which is then brought forth to the LHRC-Local Human Rights Committee to assist and provide feedback regarding the final decision, action plan to address the matter if still wanting to proceed with services.

Challenges within the agency and currently with my field placement have not arose due to careful consideration of the client in all matters. A potential challenge that does often worry me is confidentiality between the client, agency staff, and other parties such as friends, family members, and community resources. According to (NASW, 2019) when social workers provide counseling services to families, couples, or groups, social workers should seek agreement among the parties involved concerning each individual’s right to confidentiality and obligation to preserve the confidentiality of information shared by others. It is my duty and the agency staff to ensure there is consent to share information amongst various parties. If an incident was to occur, I believe I would have the support and assistance of the agency, specifically my supervisor to rectify and address the situation in the best fitting manner.

References

Garthwait, C. L. (2017). The social work practicum: A guide and workbook for students (7th ed.) pp. 41-50. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

NASW. (2017) Read the Code of Ethics: Ethical Principles. www.socialworkers.org, 2019, www.socialworkers.org/About/Ethics/Code-of-Ethics/Code-of-Ethics-English.

Response 2

Brianna Bothof  at Wednesday, October 2, 2019 9:06:31 PM

During my field work experience, I have encountered two main legal considerations. First, we work with many children and adolescents who are part of open legal cases for child abuse. While we are primarily helping these clients in a therapeutic way, such as processing trauma and providing family therapy, we do need to have basic understanding of the local court system and processes. Occasionally, we will be called to give testimony during these cases.

Another legal consideration I have encountered is providing guidance to clients who are dealing with past offenses and clearing criminal records. Some of our clients are in recovery for addiction and have serious records; part of our job is to support these clients in their attempts to clear up charges and reenter society. For example, I saw a client today who needs to pay a hefty fine from 5 years ago in order to clear up an open warrant in another state. In serving this client, our therapist has helped provide communication with the parole officer, the judge, and the client to understand the process and formulate a plan. Today, I created a debt payoff chart for the client to track his debt and increase motivation towards clearing this legal burden.

The major challenge I see to adhering to legal considerations is staying within the scope of my expertise. I am not a lawyer and do not have legal training; by providing counsel outside of my scope, I open myself up to legal risk (Garthwait, 2017).  Some clients want to ask serious legal questions that really require a lawyer’s advice, but they cannot afford one. I think that by understanding my own role, having clear guideline with clients, and forming helpful relationships with local attorneys, I can best serve my clients (Garthwait, 2017).

References:

Garthwait, C. L. (2017). The social work practicum: A guide and workbook for students (7th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

Response 3

LeKisha Lee  at Wednesday, October 2, 2019 8:58:49 AM

Week 6 Day 3

Post a blog post that includes:

  • Any legal considerations during your field education experience that you may have had to address or that you might address
    • Just recently we had a college intern and his parent threaten to sue the agency due to the intern allegations of not being compensated. The policy is that we must submit our weekly task every Sunday; specifying what has been done, what needs to be done, and a self-evaluation. In addition to the submission of the weekly task we have “Empowerment calls” every Wednesday night at 9pm to come together as a team to discuss upcoming events, progress with duties/activities that each individual has, and a chance to voice if we need assistance with the tasks given.
    • There was an urgent email sent out to each individual in the agency administration team regarding the importance of completing all task to get paid weeks before this alleged incident and in order to have access to the next weeks task we must adhere to the policy to get compensated (paid interns) or get hours (unpaid interns). This gentleman failed to provide the weekly task sheet, speak up during the calls, and stated every call that his work was completed. After myself and the CEO did check-ups on the task we found out that some agencies he was supposed to reach out to hadn’t even heard of ABC2 before making the check-up call; and that was one of his main task to spread awareness and invite other agencies to our community field day coming up this month. The parent then calls to voice her concerns, opinions, and matters- in the process of that we get another email regarding a parent call in reference to compensation (no name was released, no specific details about what was said between the parties besides compensation), but the intern decides to let us know it was his parent and he carried it on from there.
  • An explanation of potential challenges in adhering to legal considerations during your field education experience
    • Reporting unethical conduct of colleagues can be a challenging situation. For example, the situation above when the email was sent out originally from the CEO it was only to the interns regarding the parent call and a reminder of policy for completing task. After seeing the email with the language and dispute about what needs to be done; I do not think it should have been resolved that way. In my opinion after the call from the parent, the email regarding the call- I think there should have been a meeting with the entire team in the email, the parent, and the other administrators listed above.
    • In a situation such as trying to resolve a situation with a CEO and it may not happen; where must one turn to? I think that we as young adults need more training on handling emotions and expressing how we feel in a positive professional way. According to the NASW Code of Ethics, social workers have a legal and ethical responsibility to treat colleagues with respect, collaborate with other professionals to resolve ethical disputes, consult other colleagues for advice and guidance when this is in the best interest of the client, and report unethical conduct of colleagues.

References

National Association of Social Workers, (2017). Code of ethics of the National Association of Social Workers.  Retrieved from https://www.socialworkers.org/About/Ethics/Code-of-Ethics/Code-of-Ethics-English.aspx

Write in a clear, concise, and organized manner; demonstrate ethical scholarship in accurate representation and attribution of sources; and display accurate spelling, grammar, and punctuation.

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Course Project

The course project will be a research paper that encourages you to consider how to impact change in your own community. Below you will find a review of the steps you should have taken to complete the final assignment.

You should have gained an in-depth perspective of public health by understanding how to assess and analyze data, understand theoretical concepts, and apply policy and interventions for individual, community, and population level change. Based on what you have learned throughout the course from the readings, and from your own experiences, you will be able to provide thoughtful recommendations for how to develop health strategies that may be used to improve population health outcomes.

Consider the leadership skills and practical skills that may be required to enhance implementation of those strategies. It is important to think strategically and collaboratively when working within the field of public health.

The course assignments and final project will prepare you with the skills, tools, and resources to respond to or plan for public health challenges.

You have accomplished the following tasks in the previous weeks:

  • Chosen a community in the United States.
  • Identified the geographical location, that is, rural, urban, region, or neighborhood, and described the demographics, overall health status, and health statistics of the location.
  • Then, identified a health challenge or issue that is greatly affecting or burdening the community.
  • Explained and discussed access to healthcare in this location (i.e. community health centers, hospitals, health insurance providers, etc.) and the types of health and social services available as they relate to the health challenge. Presented any other community assets that may help to support prevention or solve the issue.
  • Additionally, researched the policies, programs, and strategies currently in place that support the prevention and elimination of the health issue. You may have also found that there are challenges to health improvement due to those same policies, programs, and strategies; be sure to incorporate any such findings into your presentation.
  • Identified and discussed the champions for health in the community and expanded on their approaches for success.
  • Described innovative approaches towards progress and provided recommendations for advancing public health in the community.

Write a 15–20-page, double-spaced paper in Word format. Apply APA standards to citation of sources.

Utilize at least 7–10 scholarly sources in your research and be sure to include a references page. Write in a clear, concise, and organized manner; demonstrate ethical scholarship in accurate representation and attribution of sources; and display accurate spelling, grammar, and punctuation.

Submission Details:

  • Use the following file naming convention: LastnameFirstInitial_W5_A2.doc.
  • By the due date assigned, deliver your assignment to the Submissions Area.

Describe in detail how Bogdan’s symptoms match up with the specific diagnostic criteria for the primary disorder that you finally selected for him. Note two other relevant DSM-5 criteria for that illness from the sections on “diagnostic features” and “development and course” that fit his case.

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Social work clinicians keep a wide focus on several potential syndromes, analyzing patterns of symptoms, risks, and environmental factors. Narrowing down from that wider focus happens naturally as they match the individual symptoms, behaviors, and risk factors against criteria A–E and other baseline information in the DSM-5.

Over time, as you continue your social work education, this process will become more automatic and integrated. In this Discussion, you practice differential diagnosis by examining a case that falls on the neurodevelopmental spectrum.

To prepare:

  • Read “The Case of Bogdan” and identify relevant symptoms and factors. You may want to make a simple list of the symptoms and facts of the case to help you focus on patterns.
  • Read the Morrison (2014) selection. Focus on Figure 1.1, “The Roadmap for Diagnosis,” to guide your decision making.
  • Identify four clinical diagnoses relevant to Bogdan that you will consider as part of narrowing down your choices. Be prepared to explain in a concise statement why you ruled three of them out.
  • Confirm whether any codes have changed by checking this website: American Psychiatric Association. (2017, October 1). Changes to ICD-10-CM codes for DSM-5 diagnoses. Washington, DC: Author. Retrieved from https://www.psychiatry.org/psychiatrists/practice/dsm/updates-to-dsm-5/coding-updates

Post a 300- to 500-word response in which you address the following:

  • Provide a full DSM-5 diagnosis of Bogdan. Remember, a full diagnosis should include the name of the disorder, ICD-10-CM code, specifiers, severity, and the Z codes (other conditions that may be a focus of clinical attention). Keep in mind a diagnosis covers the most recent 12 months.
  • Explain the diagnosis by matching the symptoms identified in the case to the specific criteria for the diagnosis.
  • Identify which four diagnoses you initially considered in the case of Bogdan, using the DSM-5 diagnostic criteria to explain why you selected these four items. In one or two sentences each, explain why three of these diagnoses were excluded.
  • Explain any obvious eliminations that could be made from within the neurodevelopmental spectrum.
  • Describe in detail how Bogdan’s symptoms match up with the specific diagnostic criteria for the primary disorder that you finally selected for him. Note two other relevant DSM-5 criteria for that illness from the sections on “diagnostic features” and “development and course” that fit his case.

 

Morrison, J. (2014). Diagnosis made easier (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Guilford Press.

  • Part 1, “The Basics of Diagnosis” (pp. 3–56)

https://class.content.laureate.net/ad73cbcc23f16730bd54d7baf40ccdda.pdf

The Case of Bogdan

Bogdan is a 12-year-old male in 7th grade who was brought in for services by his adoptive mother. He is very small in stature, appearing to be only 8 years old. He also acts younger than his 12 years, carrying around toy cars in his pockets, which he proudly displays and talks about in detail. Bogdan was adopted at age 3½ from an orphanage in Russia. The orphanage knows little about early developmental milestones, but Russian staff noted that Bogdan’s language was far less developed than that of his peers at the time of his adoption. The mother stated that Bogdan came to the United States not knowing any English. She knows very little about his family of origin other than that he lived with his biological parents until age 2 and then lived in the orphanage until he was adopted. She reported that the plane ride from Russia was horrible and that Bogdan cried the entire flight and refused to sleep for the first 2 days they had him. They tried holding him, but he would not quiet. The adoptive parents are upper middle class and have three biological children (ages 9, 7, and 5). Bogdan is reported to often get upset with his siblings and hit or kick them. His mother stated that Bogdan has always had issues with jealousy, and when her other children were younger, she had to closely monitor him when he was around them. She reported several occasions when she found Bogdan attempting to suffocate each of his younger siblings when they were babies. Bogdan’s mother explained this as part of his “always being immature” and not good at explaining himself. Besides this, his mother reported that he is not a “mean” child but tends to function according to his own rules. He often needed reminders to use his “indoor voice” and to “wait his turn to speak.” The mother reported that Bogdan often hides food in his room and gorges himself when he eats. She said she does not understand this behavior because he always has enough food, and she never restricts his eating. In fact, because of his small size and weight, she often encourages him to eat more. She also reported that Bogdan hates any type of transition and will get upset and have temper tantrums if she does not prepare him for any changes in plans. He is reported to kick and hit both parents, and they have had to restrain him at times to stop him from hurting himself and others. He sometimes reacted when his lunch was packed differently within his lunch box for school. He also seemed to pay less attention to teachers and often interrupted class with his own comments. Initially Bogdan’s parents were unsure what to do about their son’s behaviors. His mother is the primary caretaker and his father thought she should handle any therapy or problems related to school. His mother reported that she was now “at the end of her rope” and was ready to give her son up to foster care. Both parents are exhausted. Bogdan’s mother shared her frustration with Bogdan’s father, who “just does not understand how hard it is to care for him.”  The parents have never sought help before, as Bogdan managed to largely keep up with his schoolwork. His mother said that he has always taken things literally, but up until 6th grade, he had attended school without major problems. They had not been concerned about his grades or lack of friends. His mother said that he has always been “very shy” and never had a “best friend.” He has always shown interest in cars, trains, and trucks. Recently, behaviors at school changed and worsened. His school has complained of his inability to focus and the increase in his disruptive behaviors. Collateral contact with his teachers confirmed that he struggles with school, has no friends, and often has “meltdowns” when he does not get his way. One teacher noted that in small group classroom activities, Bogdan has trouble with restlessness and will stumble over his words, pause excessively, and restart talking fairly rapidly and loudly. In 6th grade his teachers were concerned about occasional facial “tics” that occurred at times. Prior to meeting with the school social worker today, Bogdan had never had any testing for special education, nor had he ever received any counseling services. During this intake, the school social worker met briefly with Bogdan alone. During this time, he was clearly restless, appeared anxious, and avoided her in the room. He was very slow to engage with her and was distracted by his pocket toys, which he fingered. He had pressured speech and some facial tics and was unable to keep his legs still during the interview. When he did engage, he chose to play a board game during his time in the session and he talked in detail about World War II and each of the boats in the game. His hand was in his pocket fingering toys at some moments. When asked how he knew so much about all the warships, he stated that he often watched television documentaries on the subject. Once on this topic he took less time to respond and spoke at length. His teachers commented that he talks more about this topic at other times at school. Bogdan appeared oriented to time and place. Voice in this interview was somewhat monotonic and repetitive of his interests. He was generally cooperative, and the interview passed without incident although it was obvious that he was eager to be “dismissed” from the meeting. Adapted from: Plummer, S.-B., Makris, S., & Brocksen, S. (2013). Social work case studies: Concentration year. Baltimore, MD: Laureate Publishing.