Assesments Planning

The aim of this is to discuss assessments , diagnosis , and intervention planning in social work . Starting with the goals of the aforementioned practices , the goal of any assessment is to determine whether a client constitutes risk of harm to self or others . If the assessment concludes that it is true , immediate intervention in required

Speaking about techniques to analyze social history and gather collateral data , it is necessary to note that these techniques are common for all practices that rely on intervention , ranging from psychiatry to social work . Data that should

be collected usually includes `mental health status preexisting health or mental health problems an appraisal of the client 's needs and the resources of the client 's informal support system , including family members , friends , and organizational memberships social role functioning environmental issues , including economic situation , employment status , and other basic needs and relevant cultural and religious factors (National Association of Social Workers , 1992 , `Biopsychosocial assessment

Investigating this issue in more detail , the categories of information which are relevant for intervention planning are of psychosocial emotional , and behavioral nature

As for psychosocial assessment , information to be gathered includes data relative to environment and living situation , leisure and recreation activities , religion and spiritual beliefs , childhood history , history of physical abuse (either in the role of the abuser or the abused military service history , financial concerns , social setting , per group setting , sexual history , and family situation as well as other social ethnic , cultural , or emotional factors that can , in the view of the social worker , affect the intervention process

As for emotional and behavioral assessments , information to be gathered includes data relative to emotional problems history , behavioral problems history , substance use or abuse history , current emotional and behavioral state , and maladaptive or problem behaviors

This information can be obtained from the client by means of self-assessment , collateral sources , family encirclement , and /or significant others (Bakke , 2006

As for practical assessment instruments , assessment and diagnosis in modern social work practice is usually performed using Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-IV-TR (Corcoran Walsh , 2006 . However , there have been calls for more effective and client-centered approach to assessment and diagnosis . Sonia G . Austrian (2005 ,

.4 ) draws the attention of social workers ' community to the fact that `[a]ssessment involves individualizing treatment for a client and recognizing the client 's uniqueness , while classification systems such as the DSM look for group phenomena and rely on generalizations

This is probably one of the reasons why Rapid Assessment Instruments (RAIs ) are quickly gaining ground among social workers for the reason of their brevity and easy of administration . Characteristics of RAIs according to Levitt and Reid (1981 , in Hamann , 2003 ) are as follows (a short , not exceeding two pages (b ) easily administered (c ) easily completed (d ) featuring straight forward simple language (e ) easily scored and (f ) easily interpreted . The advantages of using RAIs in social work practice , according to Toseland and Reid (1985 , in Hamann 2003 ,

.68 ) include `less time required for information collection provision of a systematic analysis of symptoms and revealing of information that is missed in clinical interviews

Widespread instruments used in the process of assessment and diagnosis are Clinical Anxiety Scale (CAS , Beck Depression Inventory (BDI , and Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS . Clinical Anxiety Scale (CAS ) is a 25-item scale that is used to assess amount , degree and severity of clinical anxiety this instrument is often cited as effective due to high coefficient of internal consistency and good psychometric properties . Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS ) a five-item scale focusing on cognitive judgmental aspect of satisfaction with life less internal consistency as reported as compared to CAS , yet the scale makes reporting and scoring processes easier and faster . Beck Depression Inventory (BDI ) is a 21-item self-report scale for assessing severity of depression high internal consistency , as well as reliability and validity , is reported (Hamann , 2003

The goal of assessment and diagnosis is to identify client 's danger to self and others . Indicators of such danger are , but not limited to anxiety , social withdrawal , isolation , depression , phobias , paranoia suicidal thoughts or attempts , violence or threat of violence , and self-neglect

Together with the assessment of client 's history and current functioning , it is necessary to identify client 's strengths and weaknesses . This is usually done on the basis of self-reporting . This step of intervention planning should be paramount importance since at this stage a social worker can tailor selected intervention techniques to the needs of individual clients . Client 's environment should be included in the assessment of client 's strength and weaknesses : if the environment is positive , the client can rely on the circle of support , yet of vice-versa is true , greater emphasis on individual effort should be made

Making an overall conclusion , it is necessary to note that careful and professional assessment is a prerequisite for successful intervention Assessment should encompassed data gathered by means of client 's self-reporting , client 's history analysis , collateral data , and a set of assessment instruments . Adequate attention should be paid to client 's strength and weaknesses

References

Austrian , Sonia G (2005 . Mental Diss , Medications , and Clinical Social Work , 3rd ed . New York : Columbia University Press

Corcoran , Jacqueline Joseph Walsh (2006 . Clinical Assessment and Diagnosis in Social Work Practice . New York : Oxford University Press

Bakke , Diane (2006 . `University of New Mexico Assessment and Screening Procedures ' Retrieved July 24 , 2007 , from http /hospitals .unm .edu /internet /policies_and_procedures /docs /psych_are as /unm_pc /UNM 20PC 20Assessment 20and 20Screening .doc

Hamann , Bhavani R (2003 . `Relatives ' Reactions to Patients ' Traumatic Brain Injury : Development and Validation of a Measurement Instrument The Florida State University School of Social Work . Retrieved July 24 2007 , from etd .lib .fsu .edu /theses /available /etd-142 /unrestricted /Disser tation071503 .pdf

National Association of Social Workers (June 1992 . `NASW Standards for Social Work Case Management ' Retrieved July 24 , 2007 , from http /www .socialworkers .org /practice /standards /sw_case_mgmt .asp ...