[humanser] Clinical Counseling

Sat May 10 17:51:48 UTC 2014

Hello Robert,

The Human Services Division is a fine place to explore your career goals. 
Many members of this division are psychotherapists, several are students, 
like you, in or contemplating entry into a graduate program..

You asked 4 questions, my responses are below each.

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?

Interestingly psychotherapists are not commonly trained or involved in 
psychological testing.  I do use several inventories, such as the Beck and 
Hamilton Inventories to assess progress as well as some other tests, these I 
most commonly have the patient mark and we review their responses.  For some 
I will keep a copy on my braille note taker and ask & mark the responses. 
If you are trained in projective tests, just mark the pictures in braille on 
the back of the card and proceed with noting patient responses word for word 
as usual.

The electronic medical records are an issue that this Division is currently 
engaged in addressing on the national stage.  The NFB is asking that EMR 
records be fully accessible in legislation to, hopefully, become policy in 
2015.  Each of us is dealing with this issue individually at the present 
time.  Some systems are fully accessible while others are far from 
accessible.

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.

I have been working as an outpatient psychotherapist for the past 12 years 
in a large hospital.  Last week a 14 year-old asked me lots of questions: 
do I wear loafers because I couldn't tie shoelaces?  Does my wife have to do 
everything for me?  He has an anger management issue along with ADHD & 
Autistic Spectrum Disorder.  An adult patient would be shy to ask, but I 
invite these questions, always focusing on the patient needs.  For example 
asking about my wife related to his ideas as a 14 year-old male with a 
disability wondering if he might ever have a girlfriend.

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

Of course.  There is discrimination in every area that a blind person 
enters.  The trick is not to be the blind job applicant, but being the best 
qualified applicant for the job.  If you wear "blind guy" to an interview, 
that is how you will be remembered.  My employers, like my patients, often 
forget that I am blind.  Often patients attempt to show me pictures on their 
smart phones, only to gasp in surprise that I cannot see.

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?

Few careers are more rewarding to the soul and less rewarding to the pocket.

Feel free to further this discussion on this list.

JD Townsend LCSW
Helping the light dependent to see
Daytona Beach, Earth, Sol System

-----Original Message----- 
From: 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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