What Types of Informal Assessments Might You Use to Help George and His Family - Essay Example

From the conditions described by George, it is clear that he does not realize that the situation at his home is not under the control of either his wife or him and that instead of trying to make things better on his own, he should seek help for his wife and child.
George also needs to realize that it is not his wife’s fault and it is not due to her negligence that their daughter is unable to perform the basic activities of daily life. Among the primary things that he will have to realize is that he will have to step up and help his wife and child in this time and most importantly realize that without his support and patience, his family will suffer even more.

2) Who else besides George would you want to see and what informal assessment would you use with these folks?

Apart from George, I would want to see his wife Teresa and if possible, their children. In the case of Teresa, it is evident that she is suffering from severe depression which might have had an onset after the delivery of her daughter J.J. It is possible that she suffered from a severe case of Post-partum depression which was never treated and worsened into the depressive state that she is currently in. George has indicated that his wife shows an inability to remain emotionally calm and is often crying when he reaches home at night with L.B, his older child. This is indicative of the fact that Teresa is having trouble coping and due to the fact that she receives absolutely no moral and psychological support from anyone, her condition is worsening with time. By talking to Teresa, I would perform a depression assessment using discourse.
I would also want to see George’s two children, L.B and J.J. The couple’s daughter three-year-old daughter is reportedly suffering from autism. The child supposedly cannot speak even though she is 3 years old. By seeing her I would like to confirm this prognosis. I would use the Psycho-educational Profile Revised (PEP-R) assessment for this child.
The reason behind wanting to meet the couple’s oldest son L.B is to find out whether the child is suffering from any stress due to the situation at his home.

3) What makes the assessments you chose for each person the best choice compared to the other assessments you learned about?

For Teresa, the chosen assessment tool is discourse. This is due to the fact that her symptoms are clearly indicative of the fact that she is suffering from major depression and talking things out in-depth with her is going to help me get to a concrete prognosis much quicker.
The reason I will use the PEP-R assessment tools on J.J is very simple. The child is under the age of 7 and falls under the category of a child below the pre-school age. Due to this, using the Psycho-educational Profile Revised assessment tool would be most appropriate for her.

4) What ethical considerations should you take into account working with George and his family?

There are many ethical issues that have to be taken into consideration when dealing with any person. This family, as is very clear is suffering from multiple problems. Most members of this family at this time are feeling very low-self esteem and due to their helplessness to change this situation, everyone is suffering from frustration. The family is in a situation where it is very likely that a therapist can develop a soft spot for the people because of their predicament. That however should be avoided at all costs because it will delay progress and hinder the process of making the right decision for these people.