Settings and successful communication skills

Discussion: Communicating in Your Internship

Directions

Kiser, Chapter 6: Communicating in Your Internship, describes the clientele who access HUS settings and successful communication skills for HUS practitioners. Throughout your HUS courses, you have been exposed to theoretical perspectives regarding individuals, groups, families, and agencies, and reviewed counseling, mental health, aging, multiculturalism, case management, and social policy. Now the time has come to apply your knowledge directly with human beings. As you have progressed through your internship and have reached the halfway mark, you have had opportunities to not only interact with clients but to observe situations in which you have been challenged to remain neutral and communicate effectively.

For your initial post:

1. Describe your client population. Cite Kiser Chapter 6 material to explain some of the characteristics of this group and some of the challenges a HUS professional might encounter.

2. Discuss what you have learned in your HUS coursework that has helped you to understand and work with this clientele. Specifically name the course and information. For example: Family Systems and Dynamics helped me to understand that the whole family plays a part in the problem that the client presents. Ethics taught me that the professional role has clear boundaries and that I must be aware of those boundaries to help my clients without violating ethical standards. Group Dynamics taught me that conflict and power may make it hard to serve my client population. Please refer to the courses you have taken.

3. Discuss at least 2 areas that have been more difficult as you work with the clientele.

4. Discuss your understanding of what roadblocks have been presented for you to overcome, for example, personal beliefs and values regarding conflict, anger, addiction, poverty, incarceration, aging, gender, culture, religion. It is important to be honest and own that although being objective is an ideal, as human beings, our own biases and beliefs will be brought into sharp relief as we deal directly with others who are facing challenges in their lives.

5. Discuss what you can do to work towards more neutrality when faced with clients who challenge you. Give at least three methods you can use to help you overcome these challenges.