[humanser] Clinical Counseling

Fri May 2 02:02:17 UTC 2014

Hello Robert,

Welcome to this list!!  I am a social worker and I have my own practice.  I
am fortunate in regards to accessible documentation since I create my own.
However, many of our participants have had issues with electronic medical
records and other accessibility issues.  Personally I have not had
difficulty with any clients due to my blindness especially youth.
Accessibility of licensing exams is a project this division is working on,
as well as some employment issues such as requirement of driver licenses.
Perusing through our archives may answer many of your questions.  Also, the
board meets this Sunday evening at 8 p.m. EDT.  I will be sending out call
in information soon.  You are welcome to listen to the meeting.

Thanks for your inquiry and I am sure you will get great feedback from other
professionals on this list.

Merry 
-----Original Message-----
From: humanser [mailto:humanser-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Hooper,
Robert M.
Sent: Wednesday, April 30, 2014 12:13 PM
To: humanser at nfbnet.org
Subject: [humanser] Clinical Counseling

Hello List:

It was recommended to me to join the Human Services list as an additional
resource. Some of you are no-doubt concurrently subscribed to the Social
Sciences List. Anyway, the below message is one that I just sent to the
Social Sciences List. If anyone has any input, I would be forever grateful.

Hello List:

Because I post with exquisite rarity on this particular list, let me preface
my inquiry with a brief introduction. My name is Robert Hooper, and I am
beginning my fifth undergraduate year at the Ohio State University, with
matriculation expected next spring. I am a psychology and neuroscience
student, however I plan to apply to graduate school to be a professional
clinical counselor. Ideally, I would like to study here at OSU for that as
well, in the Counselor Education program under the College of Education and
Human Ecology. My population interest is early childhood through
adolescence.
I am writing to find out if anyone on this list has experience as a mental
health professional, and specifically how blindness affects any aspect of
the job. For example, here are some questions to guide any responses,
although any information would be helpful, as obviously I can't think of
every relevant detail of this varied profession.

1.       I am noticing that a lot of the tools that mental health
professionals use are increasingly electronic-for example, I am currently
participating in counseling myself, and the intake interview and subsequent
assessments were all done electronically. Overall, I believe that this holds
great promise for blind counselors, but that doesn't mean the tools in their
current state are accessible. Does anyone have experience with computerized
counseling tools-testing, assessment, etc. and are they largely accessible?
If not, are their accessible alternatives? As a blind counselor, how have
you managed the task of administering psychological tests and assessments?

2.        How do clients react to having a visually impaired counselor? Has
this impacted-whether positively or negatively-the way you interact with
clients? If so, explain, especially if you have experience working with
children in this setting.

3.       Do you believe that blindness affected your employment prospects in
this area?

4.       Is there anything else you'd like to mention about mental health
counseling and related fields-the coursework, internship, state and national
exams, or job itself?

Of course, I recognize that many will have helpful input, even if they are
not doing exactly what I am, so I am open to input from anyone. Also, I am
open to recommendations for books, articles, videos, etc. I would appreciate
any information anyone has to offer-seriously. I want to hear the good and
the bad. I look forward to what will hopefully be an enlightening
discussion.
Cordially,
Robert Hooper, Undergraduate Research Assistant, HDFS Early Childhood
Development Lab
Hooper.90 at buckeyemail.osu.edu<mailto:Hooper.90 at buckeyemail.osu.edu>
The Ohio State University, Department of Psychology; Department of
Neuroscience 166H Campbell Hall
1787 Neil Avenue
Columbus, Ohio 43210
Cell: (740) 856-8195

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