[nfbmi-talk] Rehab Counselling

Fri Apr 15 21:46:49 UTC 2011

Carla,

Fred's idea of partaking in a meal with your client is a good one. It 
actually happens all the time. You have to encourage your client to be 
comfortable and honest with you and frankly, doing such things is part of 
the deal sometimes. Sometimes you have to think outside of the box.  If you 
are getting clients jobs and they are happy with your services, nobody is 
going to say, "Oh, you ate a meal with your client! That's unprofessional." 
It is a way of showing that you care. You can also observe the client in 
their own environment to assess what needs to take place. You can also gauge 
the clients' skills in that way. Another thing is that it is important to 
make a careful evaluation of the client before making assumptions, based on 
your prior experiences with other clients.
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Cheryl Wade" <wadecher at msu.edu>
To: "NFB of Michigan Internet Mailing List" <nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Thursday, April 14, 2011 11:22 PM
Subject: Re: [nfbmi-talk] Rehab Counselling


> Hello,
>
> Fred, you mentioned how, at NFB programs, counselors invite students to 
> their homes for meals. That's a great idea for a program that's 
> self-contained, and I think I would feel comfortable doing that in such a 
> situation. But for ethical reasons, counselors feel they might compromise 
> their relationships with clients if they become too friendly outside the 
> office. It's kind of like my reporting career: if your beat is city hall 
> and you hang around at the city manager's house for BBQ, some might 
> consider you suspect.
>
> Of course, counselors should above all be caring, loyal to their clients, 
> considerate of clients' needs above those of the status quo or outside 
> parties. They should, and indeed are commanded to, practice beneficence 
> and justice toward clients. That sometimes means treating all clients in a 
> similar way -- though not alike. So, if there are cuts and prioritization 
> of services, we must handle emergency situations but must not push some 
> clients ahead of others
>
> You guys are tough, and I like that. But I hope you give some of us newly 
> emerging counselors a chance. I would encourage clients to tell their 
> counselors when they're unhappy.
>
> Fred, you also mentioned how counselors should take the lead role in 
> finding jobs for clients. There is considerable discussion about that. I 
> believe that counselors should encourage clients to take as much 
> responsibility as they are comfortable doing, but prepare them for that 
> level of independence. The reason is that, if we don't encourage that kind 
> of personal responsibility in the counseling venue, we might unwittingly 
> be making clients more dependent, not less so, and patronizing them by 
> making them feel that the job search is the counselor's agenda. It is the 
> client, after all, who will be working at that job for awhile and should 
> be comfortable and happy as possible with it.
>
> Cheryl Wade
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Larry D. Keeler" <lkeeler at comcast.net>
> To: "NFB of Michigan Internet Mailing List" <nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Thursday, April 14, 2011 9:33 PM
> Subject: [nfbmi-talk] Rehab Counselling
>
>
>> Great points Mary and Fred!  I was thinking of the general counselling 
>> program at Eastern Michigan University.  It is a generic program that 
>> teaches the skills of counselling to a wide variety of proffessions. 
>> What I have found out is that yes, you can come out with many of the 
>> essentials but some of the specifics not so much.  Fred, we sure do need 
>> a center like that one in Michigan!  Joe, we need to change the system 
>> here in Michigan because everyone shouldn't have to leave the state to 
>> become self reliant.  Right now I see you are entirely correct but my 
>> hope is that we can change it before there is nothing at all!
>> Intelligence is always claimed but rarely proven!
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>
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