Health Wellbeing and Social Work - Case Study Example

Health Wellbeing and Social Work Introduction This essay focuses solely on part A of the case study. In particular, focus is placed on analysis of the client’s situation with the view of proposing appropriate mental health literacy, using rights based approach to support the client’s right to safety through the development of a safety planning and suicide risk assessment. Based on the facts presented by the case, Noni has depression. She has trouble coping at home with the children and her husband. She also has trouble sleeping. In addition, she worries about the kids, she feels a terrible sense of dread in regards to her future, she has trouble thinking, making decision and concentrating, has lost interest in her job and lastly, she has lost sex drive. Her son’s condition is also a concern. Sadil shows signs of having Attention Deficit hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). He is hyperactive and had difficulty in controlling his behaviour and staying focused. Sadil needs a range of interventions including social skills management, behaviour management and counselling. Noni needs mental health literacy to enable her to understand her son’s ADHD condition as well as her personal experiences. Health literacy is crucial for patient management. By lacking the capacity to acquire, process and understand crucial basic mental health information, she will not be able to take care of herself and her son, or make right health decisions (Kelly, Jorm and Wright, 2007) There is also a need to respond to Noni’s experiences of domestic violence. She complains that her husband (Sid) is very aggressive and has hit her numerous times. Noni also says that Sid is “heavy handed” with the children. Human rights-based approach should be applied to support Noni’s right to safety in the context of violence against women (UN Women, 2012). There is also a need for suicide risk assessment to determine whether Noni’s mental disorder has the potential to cause hazards. In the case, Noni has experienced suicidal thoughts. However, there is no guarantee that she can harm herself and others as triggered by her psychiatric disorders. In this respect, safety plans should be developed to serve as important adjunct to risk assessment (Pisani, Cross and Gould, 2011; Stanley and Brown, 2008). Para 2 - Mental health literacy Topic: Increase Noni’s mental health literacy to enable her to better understand her Sadil’s, behaviour and her own experiences. Expand: In the case, Noni has literacy problems with regards to her son’s behaviour, as she doesn’t know that Sadil, the son, could be having ADHD as advised by the GP. Noni thinks that Sadil’s behaviour is a result of bullying at school. Literacy problems among the parents are associated with the high risk of internalising and externalising disorders in children. This calls for mental health literacy among parents to increase their capacity to acquire, analyse and understand the basic health information on issues affecting children to enable them to make proper health decision (AHRQ, 2011). Health literacy consists of an assemblage of skills essential for individuals to respond effectively in the health care environment and in the right manner using the health care information. In this case, mental health literacy would refer the knowledge and perceptions about mental disorders that help in their recognition, intervention and prevention (Berkman et al, 2006). It includes the ability to recognise mental disorders ADHD, how to seek mental health information and knowledge of the causes and the risk factors and causes of the mental disorder, treatment and attitudes that helps promote relevant help (Chiarelli, 2006). Evidence: Behavioural interventions should be used to train the parent on how to be responsible for her son with ADHD. Studies have shown that this type of treatment can be more effective than cognitive-behavioural therapy, which depends on the child to self-direct his behaviour change. The behavioural interventions will take a skills-based approach (Maughan and Carroll, 2006).. Good mental health literacy given to Noni can lead to better health outcomes for Sadil’s mental disorders. A number of interventions to improve the mental health of the child include training Noni on how to better intervene during a mental health crisis through individual health programs. The health literacy programs should be focused on improving her skills and capacities to enable her to understand the mental disorders and behaviours of the children (Kelly, Jorm and Wright, 2007). Through a skills-based approach to mental health literacy, focus should be on communications and analysis skills to manage the behaviour of their children. The health content would be limited on ADHD, although the literacy instructor should focus on language, literacy and analysis of skills that adults or a child’s helper needs to undertake as the health-related tasks. An ethical method to improve health literacy of the parents or child’s helpers is through training, education and empowering the parent with the appropriate skills and abilities needed for functional mental health literacy (Chiarelli, 2006). Link Noni is expected to have improved understanding of the biological nature of ADHD. It will enable Noni to identify any signs of mental disorders affecting her son and how to seek help on his behalf. Noni is also expected to improve her knowledge on her depression. She will also be able to reduce the stigmatising attitudes and the social distance caused by her son’s behaviour. She would also have improved confidence in offering help to her son. An expected outcome is that Noni’s son would demonstrate a decrease in the Attention Deficit hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Para 3 –Noni’s depression Topic: Noni’s experience of domestic violence is analysed within a Rights based approach which supports Noni’s right to safety. This will be done through the development of a Safety planning Expand: Noni is undergoing depression. Her psychiatry disorder can increase suicide risk. Her condition requires an intervention that can reduce the risk. A safety plan refers to a prioritised list of social support measures and coping strategies that can be used by patients before or during suicidal crisis (Hughes, 2011). The purpose of the safety plan would be to develop a pre-determined list of potential coping strategies that can be suggested for Noni’s case to help her lower her looming risk of suicidal behaviour. Safety plan is a therapeutic technique that enables patients to manage depressions. In the case study, Noni has depression: she has trouble coping at home with the children and her relationship with her husband is deteriorating, she has trouble sleeping, she worries about the kids, she feels a terrible sense of dread in regards to her future, she has trouble thinking, making decision and concentrating, has lost interest in her job and sex drive (Kiosses and Ravdin, 2010) Her depression is associated to domestic violence. She complains that her husband (Sid) is very aggressive and has hit her numerous times. Noni also says that Sid is “heavy handed” with the children. Indeed, although she has not showed any suicidal behaviour, depression is likely to cause of suicide (Kiosses and Ravdin, 2010). Evidence: Rights-based approach is suggested to support Noni’s right to safety in the context of violence against women (UN Women, 2012). Through safety planning, Noni will have an opportunity to narrate her story about the domestic violence. This may include activating events and her reactions to the events. This enables the identification of warning signs that need to be included on the safety plan, and identifying specific activities that can be used to alleviate the crisis (McNaughton, 2009; Stanley and Brown, 2008). The key components of the safety plan are: recognition of warning signs of impending suicidal crisis, identification and use of internal coping strategies and using contacts with people to divert suicidal thoughts, contacting family members who may help to solve the crisis, and reduction of the latent to use lethal means. The extent in which Noni is expected to contribute to improvement of her safety would depend on a number of factors such as her risk to harm (Coulter and Ellins, 2006). Link: The suicide risks will be reduced significantly, hence improving Noni’s right to safety. Para 4 - Depression - Suicide risk Topic: Factors responsible for Noni’s depression are analysed with the view of identifying those that increase her suicide risk. Expand: Suicide can result from a range of factors such as psychiatry disorder, negative life event and access to elements of self-harm. In any individual case, a range of factors are often involved. In the case study, Noni’s depression may have resulted due to the worries over her son Sadil, the deteriorated relationship with her husband, her husband’s sudden drunkenness and her husband’s hostility towards her and the kids. These are indeed possible causes of her depression (Pisani, Cross and Gould, 2011). Studies have showed that not one individual is immune to suicide. Individuals with depression are at a great risk for suicide particularly when the risk factors specific to depression such as feelings of hopelessness, gender inequality and domestic violence, anxiety and being responsible for children (particularly young children) are present (Centre for Suicide Research, 2010). Evidence: Suicide risk assessment requires integration of clinical judgments using an evidence-based practice. Risk of suicide should be assessed throughout the course of care, in order to evaluate Noni’s response to clinical interventions and personal situational changes. The key areas to be evaluated include Noni’s predisposition to suicidal behaviour, identifying stressors such as domestic violence, assessing presence of hopelessness, evaluating her self-control and protective factors. There however risks for both under-estimation and overestimation of the suicide risks. For instance, over-estimation could include depriving Noni of her patient right, while under-estimation may result to dismissive attitudes that could as well jeopardize the patient’s safety (Centre for Suicide Research, 2010). Link: Noni’s depression will be reduced once the stressors are identified and managed. Conclusion Through appropriate mental health literacy, using rights based approach to support client’s right to safety through the development of a safety planning and suicide risk assessment. Several outcomes are expected such as Noni is expected to have improved understanding of the biological nature of ADHD. Noni will be able to identify any signs of mental disorders affecting her son and how to seek help on his behalf. Noni is also expected to improve her knowledge on her depression. She will also be able to reduce the stigmatising attitudes and the social distance caused by her son’s behaviour. The suicide risks will be reduced significantly, hence improving Noni’s right to safety. Noni’s depression will be reduced once the stressors are identified and managed. References AHRQ (2011). Health Literacy Interventions and Outcomes: An Updated Systematic Review. Rockville: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality Berkman N., Sheridan S., Donahue KE, Halpern D., Viera A., Crotty K., Holland A., Brasure M., Lohr K., Harden E., Tant E., Wallace I., Viswanathan M. (2011). Health Literacy Interventions and Outcomes: An Updated Systematic Review. Evidence Report/Technology Assessment No. 199 Centre for Suicide Research (2010). Assessment of suicide risk in people with depression. Oxford: University of Oxford. Chiarelli, L. (2006). Health Literacy Interventions. Canadian Public Health Association.Retrieved: Coulter, A. & Ellins, J. (2006). Patient-focused interventions: A review of the evidence. London: The Health Foundation Hughes, C. (2011). "Objective Assessment of Suicide Risk: Significant Improvements in Assessment, Classification, and Prediction." American Journal of Psychiatry 168(12). retrieved: Kiosses, D. & Ravdin, L. (2010). "Psychosocial Interventions for Depressed Older Adults With Cognitive Impairment and Disability." Psychiatric Times. Retrieved: Kelly, C., Jorm, A. & Wright, A. (2007). “Improving mental health literacy as a strategy to facilitate early intervention for mental disorders.” MJA 187(7): s26-30 Maughan, B. & Carroll, J. (2006). Literacy and mental disorders. Current Opinion in Psychiatry 19:350–354 McNaughton, J. (2009). "Brief interventions for depression in primary care: A systematic review." Canadian Family Physician 55(8): 789-796 Pisani, A., Cross, W. & Gould, M. (2011). "The Assessment and Management of Suicide Risk: State of Workshop Education." Suicide Life Threat Behav. 2011 June; 41(3): 255–276. Stanley, B. & Brown, G. (2008). Safety Plan Treatment Manual to Reduce Suicide Risk: Veteran Version. Retrieved: UN Women (2012). Adopting a human rights-based approach. Retrieved: Read More