Case study social work case

CSRV21618 Crisis Intervention and Trauma Informed Practice Case Study #1: Trauma-Informed Service Provision (20%) Group Work: This assignment can be completed in pairs or groups up to a maximum of 4 people. Talk to your professor if you prefer to do the assignment individually. Sensitive Content Note: Please note that the content in this case study is sensitive in nature and may bring up different thoughts, emotions and sensations. For some, the content may impact you more personally. We encourage you to use your grounding techniques, support systems and support each other in your group. Reach out to your professor, if you need further support and they can support you in making a referral to counselling. Please also reach out if you want to explore an alternative case scenario (if the topic feels too personal). Rubric: Review the rubric and assignment closely. Refer to it like a checklist to ensure you have answered the questions fully and met all the requirements. Task: • This assignment consists of a case study with eight questions and your staff written response. • Read the case study carefully, paying attention to the details. Take notes/highlight key points. • Please use the assignment template pages 4-5, with your typed answer. • Use the marks allocated for each answer to guide the time and detail you give to that question. Aim for more detail versus less for full marks. • The format of the answers does not need to be in APA but the titlepage should be APA formatted. • The answers to the questions come directly from the case study and the content in our course. Do not use ChatGBT or online resources to find answers -this is an academic integrity issue. Preparation for Success: 1. Review Modules 1-3 as you will need to draw on the key concepts. Module 3 is the foundation for this assignment. 2. Know the 5 Types of Traumas, and the 5 Major Factors that determine how people respond to traumatic experiences. 3. Understand the principles of a Trauma Informed Approach to service delivery and the qualities and characteristics of a service provider. 4. Know how you position yourself and what you are thinking about in a Trauma Informed Practice. 5. Review the trauma skills and consider how you might ask questions through a Trauma Informed lens. 6. Use the Case of RAPHAEL in Module 3 to practice. Case Study #1: Mariya and her children Jeremy, Rayan & Brianna You are a new Social Service Worker, employed at a Women’s Shelter in the Region of Peel. Mariya (she/her) arrived at the shelter at 4 p.m. on Wednesday September 18, 2024. The night before an ambulance transported her to the emergency room at the Credit Valley Hospital, following an incident of violence and threats perpetrated by her ex-husband. Her ex-husband fled the scene before the police arrived. The police officer transported her three children to the hospital, as there was no family nearby. The children stayed in the waiting room, all night, and a good part of the day, while their mother was assessed and treated for injuries. Mariya was treated for a concussion due to a head injury and assessed for injuries because of the violence. Mariya described that the children’s father threatened to find her to kidnap his children. Mariya told the hospital Social Worker that this was not the first time that her ex-husband assaulted her. In fact, this was the reason that she had recently left him. She had stayed with him mainly because of her fear of deportation due to the threats her ex-husband made. She does not have family in Canada and only knows a couple of neighbors but has no close friends here. Mariya left her country two years ago due to the rising violence and lack of safety in their community. A traumatic experience of sexual assault by an army member and threats towards her children, instigated the need for them to leave. She had not disclosed the assault to her husband, for fear of his reaction and shame. Her guilt at not having been able to prevent the sexual assault and the flashbacks of the incident were overwhelming. A contributing factor to her feelings was the prevalent cultural and familial idea that if a woman is sexually assaulted, she is to blame for it. During the night at the hospital, the hospital Social Worker called the local shelter crisis line and connected Mariya to the crisis line counsellor. Mariya was informed she could come to the shelter the next day at 4p.m. The shelter provided a taxi to take her and her children from the hospital to the shelter. The children were going to miss school and daycare that day. Arriving at the Shelter: Mariya and her children, Jeremy (age 10), Rayan (age 6) and Brianna (age 4) arrive at the confidential women’s shelter at 4p.m. The family had only eaten a sandwich, juice, and chips at the hospital and none of them had slept much while at the hospital. They carried in only a tote bag of personal items with them. The family arrived at the shelter during shift change, when the day staff was leaving, and the night staff was arriving. The office door typically remains closed, due to the confidential nature of the information shared by staff working the crisis line and daily shelter activities. Mariya was quickly greeted and given her room assignment and some personal care items by the staff member who met her at the door. The staff member was friendly and apologized for leaving her upon her arrival but said she must get back to the office and go over resident plans and results before 5 pm. Mariya stayed in her room for several hours until a staff member came and invited her and her children to the kitchen for dinner which was followed by a tour of the shelter. Case Management Meeting: The next day you and the other shelter staff hold the daily case management meeting. During this meeting the team reviews the new residents’ arrivals, resident’s progress, any house concerns and how residents are doing with their communal chores and meeting their goals and objectives. There is tension between shelter staff at this meeting due to the alternative views of Mariya’s behavior. There is obvious disagreement about what is going on with Mariya and how to respond. Anna (staff member) reported during the meeting that Mariya was observed pacing in the hallway and repeatedly looking out the dining room window. She said she makes the other women uncomfortable because she walks around humming and constantly checking on her children, insisting that they stay next to her in the room. If Mariya goes to the bathroom, she makes the children sit outside the bathroom in the hallway. Abigail (staff member) said that Mariya was closed off and not open to talking to her and that she just wanted to find a place to stay. Abigail said Mariya should be more respectful and thankful for her bed because the shelter has a wait list and there are others who need the space more than she does. Abigail thinks that maybe Mariya is going through withdrawal because she believes she was possibly using substances, and that is why she is so paranoid and withdrawn and keeping information from the staff. Veronica (night shift staff member) indicated that she believes Mariya needs a psychiatric mental health assessment because she is rocking, listless, and nonresponsive to staff. Veronica says that Mariya is super paranoid and hums all the time. Isla (staff member) asked if anyone has taken the time to sit in a quiet space and talk with Mariya yet. She wants to explore how Mariya is feeling and coping with the transition to the shelter. She also wants to know how her children are adjusting and coping with everything that has happened. Isla thinks it is important to talk to Mariya about ways to increase her feelings of safety and if there is anything she may need. Layla (staff member) is more concerned about how the other residents are feeling with this new family’s arrival. She seems annoyed by Mariya’s behavior and sees it as disruptive to the other residents. Anna and Abigail disagree with Isla’s approach, thinking that only mental health professionals should talk to Mariya about her feelings and fears. Assignment Questions: 1. Identify which staff member(s) is/are thinking and working from a Trauma Informed Approach? What makes their thought process Trauma Informed? What is the potential impact of this approach for Mariya and her children? Be sure to address every staff member and be specific about their approach supported with specific examples. (3 marks) 2. Identify which staff member(s) is/are thinking from a Traditional Approach (i.e., not Trauma Informed)? What makes their thought process Traditional? What is the potential impact of this approach for Mariya and her children? Be sure to address every staff member and be specific about their approach supported with specific examples. (3 marks) 3. Consider the 5 Types of Traumas discussed in class. Which type(s) of trauma is Mariya and her children experiencing? Explain why. (4 marks). 4. From what you know of Mariya at this point, assess and describe how the 5 Major Factors studied in class may be influencing her and her children’s response to traumatic experiences. Your response should address all 5 factors and be supported with detailed examples. (5 marks) 5. Identify 3 trauma reactions Mariya is experiencing? (3 marks) 6. Identify 4 potential trauma triggers/activations that Mariya and/or her children may experience while at the shelter, from their recent and past experiences of trauma. Be specific. (4 marks) 7. A women’s shelter is occupied by other women and children. While the residents have their own rooms, the washroom, the kitchen, and family room area are shared spaces. The families are all navigating their own difficult traumatic experiences. Shelters have various rules and policies that they expect residents to follow to ensure comfort and safety for everyone. How do you think the shelter environment might be experienced by Mariya and her children? What 2 rules/policies at the shelter may be impacting Mariya? (4 marks) 8. Bringing a Trauma-Informed and Anti-Racist/Anti-Oppressive perspective, identify 2 specific ways you can be a trauma-informed advocate with Mariya and her family; and identify 2 specific organizational strategies to support other/future families at the shelter? (4 marks) 9. Imagine you are a staff person about to meet with Mariya alone today in a private office. The shelter Child and Youth Worker will be in the playroom with her children during the meeting. State exactly what you would say in your conversation to engage and connect with her, including a basic needs assessment to support her stay at the shelter. There should be 1-2 statements for each of the following 10 areas (10 marks). Note: You do not need to say what Mariya would say to each of your statements. 1. Introduce yourself and rapport building statements and strategies. 2. Supporting them from an Anti-Racist/Anti-Oppressive Practice and Strengths-Based Approach. 3. Validating their experience. 4. Making choice and collaboration explicit. 5. Providing a rationale for your questions. 6. Finding out their priorities. 7. Establishing and maintaining a sense of safety. 8. Addressing their behaviours in the shelter in a trauma-informed and supportive way. 9. Link their experiences (behaviors) as trauma responses (non-pathologizing, non stigmatizing, non labelling). 10.Supportive closing statements at th