Assessment: Specific Resources, Instruments, and Observations
INTRODUCTION
This unit will focus on how counselors assess their clients during the initial stages of the counseling process. How will you gather the information that will assist in describing the client's presenting issues; current level of functioning; strengths and limitations; risk factors; characteristic patterns of thinking, feeling, and behaving; and possible areas for focus in the counseling process?
Much of this information may come from a structured initial interview or biopsychosocial assessment, which frequently occurs during the first intake session. Counselors also use more formal types of assessments in early sessions, such as a mental status exam, depression/anxiety inventories, symptom checklists, or other self-report measures.
Having familiarity with the range of assessment instruments and processes available to counselors and understanding when they can be used to produce reliable and valid information to assist in the counseling process are important parts of professional development.
Your site supervisor can discuss your current fieldwork site's approach to assessment and may also be able to provide more information about the way other agencies or practitioners in your area approach using methods to assess clients, track their progress, and evaluate therapy outcomes.
OBJECTIVES
To successfully complete this learning unit, you will be expected to:
1. Review various assessment tools designed to address specific disorders.
2. Identify the strengths and limitations of assessment tools.
3. Gauge the effectiveness of selected assessment tools in soliciting client data and facilitating interaction.
4. Discuss cultural characteristics that impact the selection and application of assessment tools.
I have selected the Beck Depression Inventory for this paper.
Utilize one or more specific methods of assessment with a client you are working with at your fieldwork site. Ask your site supervisor to assist you in selecting an assessment that is appropriate for your client and that is currently used at your site (such as the Beck Depression Inventory, Beck Anxiety Inventory, mental status exam, biopsychosocial assessment, ecomap, genogram, or another developed assessment instrument).
If your fieldwork site does not use any methods for a formal evaluation process with clients, select at least one assessment tool that you believe would be appropriate for your client, and discuss its use with your site supervisor.
A structured interview, biopsychosocial assessment, and genogram are less intrusive methods of assessment than using a developed instrument and should be discussed as possibilities with the site supervisor. Once you have permission from your supervisor to use this assessment method, set up a time to administer it with your client.
After you have collected client, couple, or family data using the various assessment tools given to you by your agency or organization (as well as any other assessment tool from your readings, with your site supervisor's approval), synthesize, summarize, and write your assessment of the client, in a 3-4 page paper that:
5. Offers a brief description of your client, couple, or family, omitting any personally identifying information.
6. Describes the rationale for using these particular assessment forms (that is, agency policy, diagnostic clarification, and so on).
7. Gauges the effectiveness of selected assessment tools in soliciting client data and facilitating interaction.
8. Identifies the strengths and limitations of assessment tools.
9. Discusses cultural characteristics that impact the selection and application of assessment tools.
10.Identifies the limitations of these tools in gathering data and building the helping relationship.