Challenges For Mental Health Social Workers

Challenges For Mental Health Social Workers Service users with mental health problems can present social workers with their own unique challenges; by exploring these challenges it is possible to gain a greater understanding of the role of the social worker. It is intended to look at the desired outcomes from Social Work intervention and the processes that a Social Worker can use to facilitate these outcomes.   Prevention-Work with groups at risk of mental health problems to promote positive mental health -work with individuals and families reduce the negative effects of institutionalisation and to promote social integration. (DAVIES, 2008)pp260 Multidisciplinary Teams-medicine- Psychiatrist-nurses-psychologist-occupational therapists-social worker All Social Workers, not just Mental Health Social Workers, need to be aware of the multitude of mental health conditions that exist. Whilst it is not the role of a Social worker to diagnose a mental illness; it is important for Social Workers to recognize that a client may have a mental health problem and be able to refer the client to a medical professional. Mental Health issues are present across all areas of social work including, child protection, older people, criminal justice and physical illness. (Manktelow, 2008) It is also important that Social Workers understand the various causes and contributing factors that can lead to the onset of mental health problems. It is widely agreed among health professionals that the causes of mental illness can be physical, psychological, social and environmental or more usually a combination of these factors. Physical- Genetic, brain injury, illness, pre birth factors such as maternal substance abuse or maternal illness during pregnancy Psychological- Abuse or trauma, bereavement or divorce Social and environmental factors- Lack of support network, stressful job, unemployment, living in a deprived or high crime area, poor accommodation, and lack of privacy. (www.rethink.org) http://www.rethink.org/about_mental_illness/what_causes_mental_illness/index.html [accessed 23/11/2010] Whilst physical causes can generally be put purely in the realm of the medical professionals; some issues such as substance abuse during pregnancy are a social work issue and whilst it is intended to concentrate on the work of the social worker within the bounds of mental health it is important to remember that many of the agreed causes of mental health problems are also social work issues and that early intervention in these areas can prevent future problems. The Social Workers role is especially important for service users with a dual diagnosis i.e. schizophrenia and substance dependence as the two conditions tend to be managed by different agencies; add to that issues with housing and benefits and it can be seen that effective communication as facilitated by the Social Worker is paramount (Parrish, 2010) The ultimate role of intervention is to improve the quality of life for the service user, their families, carers and all concerned. Cite Perhaps now would be a good time to look at what a person requires to feel that they have a good quality of life and the negative effect that a mental health problem could have on these requirements. Maslow with his Hierarchy of Needs tells us that to achieve a good quality of life we need firstly, the basic requirements of life without which a person will die then next in the hierarchy is the need for safety followed by Love and belonging, esteem and finally self actualization. Whilst the theory has its critics; most of the criticisms are aimed at the hierarchal nature of the theory. When the theory is applied to a specific population as in Majercsiks study of the needs of geriatric patients it can be seen that the hierarchy can be skewed.(Majercsik, 2005) It is generally agreed that if these needs are not met then this will have a negative effect on quality of life. E. Majercsik. (2005). Hierarchy of Needs of Geriatric Patients. Gerontology, 51(3), 170-3. Retrieved November 26, 2010, from ProQuest Nursing Allied Health Source. (Document ID: 823764721). The initial concerns during assessment and intervention are to ensure that the basic needs of the individual are being met and that they can continue to be met either by the individual or if necessary by a care plan. As well protecting the client from harm Service users with mental health problems my present a safety risk to themselves or others and it is important that these risks be assessed and if necessary steps taken to reduce these risks. If a client is deemed to be a risk to themselves or others they may be detained for treatment under the Mental Health Act (1983). This process requires an Approved Mental Health Professional (AMHP) to make an application for admission to hospital for assessment or treatment. Deprivation of liberty is a serious matter and as such it is covered by strict laws and guidelines. It is important for a Social worker working in the field of mental health to know the laws and procedures involved with compulsory detention. (Golightley, 2008) Mental illness can be caused by abuse but also having a mental illness can leave a person vulnerable to abuse. Individuals with mental health problems are vulnerable to abuse in many forms, physical, sexual, psychological, financial, discrimanatary and neglectful. This abuse can come from many sources, friends, family, neighbours, strangers and even care proffessionals. This abuse can be intentional or unintentional. Working with vulnerable people puts a Social Worker in a position of power both real and percieved and it is important that this position of power is not abused. The GSCC Codes of Practice state that as a Social Worker you should recognise and use resposibly the power that comes from your work with service users and carers (GSCC 2002). The use of anti oppressive, anti discriminatory and reflective practices is therefore essential to good practice. Working in partnership with clients, setting the client realistic goals and the use of a person centered approach all serve t o redress this balance of power. Recognizing how ones own emotions, circumstances and values effect the way in which a person or situation is percieved is an important factor in being non-judgemental. A Holistic approach, taking into account, race, culture, social standing can help prevent discrimination. It is important to appreciate that any care plan should meet the needs of the individual and to ensure that the family/carers are also supported. Caring for a family member with a mental health problem can have many negative effects on the carer. The family may suffer financial hardship, social stigma and isolation. Children may feel or even be neglected due to the demands of caring placed on a family; this can lead to attention seeking behaviour, missing school, poor hygene, poor health or criminal activity. They may feel fear or intimidated by the unusual behaviour exhibited in some forms of mental illness. Carers may feel helpless, overwhelmed, tired, socialy deprived and may neglect their own care in favour of that of the ill family member; this can lead to physical or mental illness for the carer. If the carer can no longer cope with the caring role then the individual can be neglected. It is essential then that the family/carers receive support in their role. The Social Worker must develop a care plan that helps the family cope with their role as carers; this may include carer support groups, coping strategies for dealing with aggressive behaviour or hallucinations, advice on benefits, bringing in outside carers and explainations of treatments and illnesses. An effective care plan can improve the quality of life for the service user and their family and this in turn reduces the need for hospitalization and can prevent a host of future problems. Service users who require hospitalization for long periods of time can present different problems. They can become institutionalized and require a lot of work when the time comes that they are ready to re enter society.

Free Hamlet Essays: Hamlet Interpreted :: The Tragedy of Hamlet Essays

Hamlet Interpreted It is clear Hamlet can be interpreted from a multitude of perspectives on numerous levels. I cannot quite grasp Mr. Bloom's contention that this is a work of near biblical importance nor can I accept his allusions to Jesus or the Buddha. "Hamlet remains apart; something transcendent about him places him more aptly with the biblical King David, or with even more exalted scriptural figures."(Bloom, 384). My immediate response is that when Mr. Bloom shuffles off this mortal coil, I don't believe Billy Shakespeare will be waiting with a pint of ale. Professor Schechner's enjoyable production increased my appreciation of the value of wardrobe and inflection of voice. Prior to this performance I did not see Polonius as a buffoon (as portrayed by Mr. Shapli), nor the incestuous nature of Ophelia's familial relationships (Ms. Cole's ability to transform from coquette to lunatic was shocking). Doubtless there are near as many interpretations of Hamlet as there are Shakespearean aficionados. My own expertise lies in the political arena. I believe Hamlet could be construed as a treatise on aggressive, imperialist behavior. Throughout the Dramaturgic Analysis of Hamlet Prince of Denmark the indecisiveness of Hamlet is noted. He does not immediately seek vengeance but continually schemes, rants and raves (both in his rational and insane moments). Whether cowardice, caution, or simply indifference dominate his persona is unclear - what is clear is his distaste for his own behavior: "How stand I then, That have a father kill'd, a mother stain'd,...And let all sleep, while to my shame I see The imminent death of twenty thousand men... (sic)." (Shakespeare, 116). The impending doom of the twenty thousand men alludes to a campaign waged by Fortinbas, the Prince of Norway. Though the battleground is said to be of little value, Fortinbas is warring on principles of honor and the subsequent expansion of Norway. An enraged Hamlet mistakenly slays Polonius. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are sent to their inconsequential deaths only when he is inspired by pirates to save his own life. These murders involved no elaborate schemes but were simply enacted. Yet with all his planning, his opportunities, his justification, why can he not kill Claudius? The portrayal of the pirates as "merciful thieves" (Shakespeare, 124) and the fact that warlike Fortinbras succeeds in Poland and obtains the Kingdom of Denmark by play's end - may be a commentary on decisive, imperialistic behavior.

The Evaluation of TOEFL test

The test is used in college admissions for non-native English speaking students to an English- peaking country purposes. Although it provides scores of test takers so that college administrators can know their English proficiency directly, the test is not aim at ranking. The test divides criteria into four parts: reading, listening, speaking and writing. According to process, reading comprehension is the first part should be measured. This part tests test takers' ability to comprehend academic reading materials.In this section, the format of questions Is multiple choices and content of test questions Involves In various ways such as testing vocabulary, details, and mall Ideas. To avoid creating an advantage to examinees In any one field of study, sufficient context Is provided so that no specific subject can be used to answer the questions. It is a big advantage of the test. Moreover, other advantage is like that, due to diversified questions, it helps learners to know how to get inf ormation effectively in a limited time.It also encourages test takers to read more academic materials involving in different area and critically think how to read deferent academic articles when they are learning. However, the questions of reading test mostly adopt multiple choice rather than short answer. It may limit takers to think more about their own opinion. For example, when testing about vocabulary, the question Just gives four choices and asks examinees to choose the best one. Actually, there are also have a lot of words can be selected.The goal of the question Is to assess test takers about their understanding of this word. Therefore, I think If questions may ask examinees to write down their own words based on their comprehension that Is better. In the listening section, it involves in dialogues and academic talks. The purpose of this section is to test listening comprehension in academic environment. In other words, it measures test takers' ability of listening for basic comprehension, listening for pragmatic understanding and to connect and combine ideas presented in multiple information sources.Like reading section, the formats of questions also adopt various ways. Moreover, examinees' note taking can be practiced and improved from the listening test. Dialogues and lectures talking will last more than one minute. To most of them, they cannot memorize the whole content without noting. Therefore, how to write down key information in a limited time can be a skill for test takers who will study In an academic atmosphere. Furthermore, diverse formats provide a good opportunity for them to realize how to master essential Information with thinking different ways.The speed of listening Is normal speed and sometimes, the listening test involves in different voices of pronunciation to make test takers know and listening test as we discussed above. I think the way that listening test needs to improve is similar to reading test. It also means that using open questions replace multiple choices can be thought. Next part is speaking test. This section will test ability to communicate effectively in a variety of situations.The ability of synthesizing and summarizing what test takers have read in their textbooks and heard in and outside of the class, the skill of forming their own opinions in response to the information they have processed, well-developed, coherent and clear idea with effective use of grammar, and good pronunciation and intonation these are main goals to assess speaking ability. The strength of this part is to combine reading with speaking and to provide opinion-based questions. Moreover, the degree of each question be tested is gradually harder.The topic for examinees may also from familiar to a little hard to understand. In my opinion, the speaking test can be a bad section as well as a good one in TOEFL. The good way is that it not Just evaluates speaking ability in academic way but also involves in common environment. I t not just has output but input first such as reading, and then speaking. Nevertheless, due to the test is based on Internet, that is, speaking section also needs to be tested in the computer, and it brings a problem.Compared with talking to examiners, it is not flexible. It has no communication between examinees and examiners. For my perspective, test takers also may feel anxiety because there has no response when hey speak and feel nervous or without good preparation to speak due to time limited. The last component in TOEFL is the writing section. It measures ability to write in standard academic English. It divides into two parts: integrated writing task and independent writing task.The goal of the first part integrated writing task asks examiners to demonstrate that they have understood material coming from different sources (reading and listening) and to combine the information from those sources in a coherent, well organized, summarized written form to draw conclusions of the important points. The independent writing task aims to measure the students' ability to state their opinions or express their comments on topics which are based on their personal knowledge and experience. In general, if test takers want to get a higher score, they should know steps of essay and practice more in academic ways.The good thing of this TOEFL writing test is using academic materials to integrate reading and listening to write a summary. Although topic of independent writing task is not necessary referring to academic issues, the writing steps should follow in academic steps. Moreover, owing to computer-based writing, the score is not influenced by handwriting. Nevertheless, it may also be a problem due to time limit especially for some people who are not good at typing or have not well speediness. It is a little hard to deal with except encouraging these persons to practice more about their typing.To sum up, I think TOEFL test is a good test though it brings some challeng e to me. There have a lot of benefits of this test. Firstly, it ensures that test- takers are being measured objectively on the same material. The grading is standardized based on rubrics provided by TEST, so test scores are the same no matter whom or what is scoring them. Secondly, there is no age, no gender and no nationality limit for taking the test. Anyone who wants to assess their English language performance especially for people who need to study aboard in English feedback.When persons received their result, score will definitely appear in their paper and evaluation of each section will be provided so that examinees are able to know the strength and weakness of themselves in general ways. Finally, the speaking and writing parts integrate some input tasks such as reading and listening to test rather than be measured separately. The integrated tasks may be considered more Hellenizing in the test will help learners build the confidence needed to communicate in the academic envi ronments they plan to enter because students need to be able to combine their language skills in the classroom.Appropriate challenge will improve learners to more think about their weakness of language learning and hence to find effective ways they can develop. However, there still have some limitations in the test. In the first place, although test takers can be offered some feedbacks from the organization, the feedbacks of scores Just simplify the degree of their performance. They cannot get more individual feedback about the strength and weakness they have according to the test. Likewise, each level still has its deviation.Even though examinees can get same level of sections for each test, they may confuse about the score why last time they can get a high score whereas this time is a low score. In the second place, I feel the time arrangement also has its problem. In general, the test will last three hours at least but Just ten minutes for break from morning to afternoon. For man y test takers, the time may make them feel exhausted and influence their performance more or less. In the third place, the procedure of the test may also have its weakness.In order to avoid cheating in the test, examiners require learners to answer extra section such as reading or listening based on different individuals randomly. Hence, it will result in the time of speaking section beginning different. It is unfair to the individuals who are doing speaking earlier while others who are still doing reading or listening part can have a chance to listen others' speaking and have more time to prepare during the break. The final point I want to mention is that there have a lot of test preparation for each section test.Learners will make more focus on searching or studying methods in order to get a higher score rather than improve their language ability. As we discussed above the limitation, not all can get right solution. But I think we still are able to find some ways to improve. First ly, the examiners can provide rubrics of each specific score for test takers instead of the level of performance. That is, I think they need to list more details of each point and make learners more better understanding about why they can get this point and why they cannot get. The feedback should mainly reflect individual's strength and weakness instead of general errors.The general problem also can be placed in the reflection but not in the domain way. Secondly, when talking about dealing with the procedure, I think administers may provide another place for test takers about test speaking. In other words, when finishing their reading and listening part, examiners need to go the place which dedicated to speaking test after having a rest. Finally, due to various test preparation, in my opinion, I believe that form of diversification can be a good way to assess. For example, applying more open questions instead of multiple choices may be helpful for improving learners high order thin king.

Analysis Of George Orwell s Animal Farm - 1482 Words

Camelot Appling English Honors II Ms.Litos Indirect and Direct Characterization There are lots of difference between indirect and direct characterization. Truthfully, what does indirect and direct characterization really mean? Indirect Characterization: is the process in which the personality of a fictional character is revealed by the characters speech, actions, appearance and so much more. Direct characterization: is when the process in which the personality of a fictional character is revealed by using descriptive adjectives, phrases, or epithets. Last year I read many books that use indirect and direct characterization. I would say that some of the most drawn characterizations were in the novel the Romeo and Juliet. We find indirect and direct characterization in many literature. Also in the book Animal Farm which was written by George Orwell who is a great writer and this book showed me a lot about when it came to direct and indirect characterization. We can find many indirect and direct characterization which would help us understand in depth what the auth or means and his purpose of writing this novel about animals who take over their farm. These characterizations can basically help you understand more and connect more to the characters of these books. These books that I have chosen have both difficult character to understand but the characterizations can actually help with the problems that you have connecting to theShow MoreRelatedAnalysis of George Orwell ´s Animal Farm1077 Words   |  5 Pages‘Animal Farm’ is considered as one of George Orwell’s most popular and enduring works. Utilizing the form of the animal fable the short novel chronicles the story of a group of barnyard animals that revolt against their human masters in an attempt to create an Utopian state. Orwell satires the rise and decline of socialism in the Soviet Union and the emergence of the totalitarian regime of Joseph Stalin. 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