In four pages, double spaced, Times New Roman 12. For assigned cases, you can omit “Identifying Information”, “Presenting Problem/Reason for Referral”, & “Course of Contacts”.
Case of Joleen
This assignment requires students to draw on the theoretical and empirical knowledge base and data pertinent to the cultural and diversity aspects of a selected case and apply this knowledge within the cultural formulation method in such a manner as to (a) demonstrate awareness of how individual and cultural differences impact the particular case; (b) articulate an approach to working effectively with the particular patient and other diverse individuals and groups – including individuals whose values may differ from or conflict with their own; and (c) indicate how knowledge of diversity variables applies directly to all aspects of their own professional work roles, including research, teaching/supervision/training, and direct service.
In response to either a case vignette that will be distributed in class or a case drawn from the student’s own field experience, the student will follow the “Cultural Formulation” outline as described in class and in Lewis-Fernandez & Diaz (2002) and will write a paper that organizes the case according to the categories comprising the cultural formulation (listed below) and, in so doing:
Identifies the salient issues of culture and diversity and their relationship to the clinical issues present.
Examines the implications of each cultural / diversity issue for the diagnosis, treatment, and overall care of the patient, and why the issue is /was problematic (or potentially so).
Describe how the clinical and cultural/diversity issues might be (or if it is a past case from the student’s own work, were or might have been) addressed therapeutically in such a manner as to promote both psychological health and social justice.
Examines how heightened awareness and increased knowledge of cultural and individual differences and the framework and skills associated with the cultural formulation method may be applied to current and future encounters with issues of diversity in all professional roles and functions.
The cultural formulation paper must include the following sections and content:
Identifying information (The patient’s age, race, ethnicity, gender, marital status, occupation, and other pertinent identifying demographic data. To protect their confidentiality, patients’ will not be identified by their actual names, only by initials or a pseudonym.)
Presenting problem /Reason for Referral (The reason for and circumstances under which the patient is receiving clinical attention; the presenting problem both as expressed by the patient and as described by the clinician and/or referral source.)
Course of contacts(s) (The number, nature, and overview of contacts between the patient and clinician.)
Patient’s cultural background (This section must be informed by and make direct reference to concepts and findings of the empirical and theoretical literature pertinent to cultural variables impacting the patient’s social history)
Patient’s cultural identity (The patient’s social group memberships; cultural reference groups; degree of involvement with culture of origin and host culture; language abilities and preferences).
Cultural explanations (as applicable) of the patient’s behavior / illness (Means / behaviors by which the patient’s illness is expressed /communicated – i.e., the “idiom of distress;” meaning and perceived severity of the patient’s presenting problem in relation to the norms of the cultural reference groups; local illness categories used by the individual and family to identify the illness; perceived causes and “explanatory models” that the individual and reference group(s) use to explain the illness; past experiences with professional and popular sectors of care, and current preferences.)
Cultural factors related to the patient’s psychosocial environment and level of functioning (Culturally relevant interpretations of psychosocial stressors, available social supports, role of religion and kin networks in providing support.)
Cultural elements of the patient-clinician encounter/relationship (Individual differences in culture, reference group membership, and social status between the patient and clinician, and the impact of those differences on diagnosis and treatment.)
Overall cultural assessment for diagnosis and care (Comprehensive and detailed integration of diversity knowledge with data about the particular patient, and their application to a discussion of how cultural and other diversity considerations specifically influence the patient’s diagnosis and care.)
Discussion, implications, and applications (Comprehensive and integrated discussion of the case including the implications, relevance, and direct and potential applications of the cultural formulation method to working professionally with diversity in all professional roles and activities, including research, teaching/supervision/training, and direct clinical service.)In four pages, double spaced, Times New Roman 12. For assigned cases, you can omit “Identifying Information”, “Presenting Problem/Reason for Referral”, & “Course of Contacts”.
