You will be asked to make three decisions concerning the diagnosis and treatment for this client. Be sure to consider co-morbid physical as well as mental factors that might impact the client’s diagnosis and treatment. At each Decision Point, stop to complete the following: Decision #1: Differential Diagnosis Which Decision did you select? Why did you select this Decision? Support your response with evidence and references to the Learning Resources. What were you hoping to achieve by making this Decision? Support your response with evidence and references to the Learning Resources. Explain any difference between what you expected to achieve with Decision #1 and the results of the Decision. Why were they different? Decision #2: Treatment Plan for Psychotherapy Why did you select this Decision? Support your response with evidence and references to the Learning Resources. What were you hoping to achieve by making this Decision?
Explain any difference between what you expected to achieve with Decision #2 and the results of the Decision. Why were they different? Decision #3: Treatment Plan for Psychopharmacology Why did you select this Decision? Support your response with evidence and references to the Learning Resources. What were you hoping to achieve by making this Decision? Support your response with evidence and references to the Learning Resources. Explain any difference between what you expected to achieve with Decision #3 and the results of the decision. Why were they different?
Also include how ethical considerations might impact your treatment plan and communication with clients and their family.
Rhonda is a 32-year-old Hispanic female who presents to your office for her initial appointment. When you ask what brought her to your office, she states: “I’m at the end of my rope, I don’t know what else to do.” She then bursts into tears. Rhonda explains that she has very few friends left, and everyone seems to have “abandoned” her. Rhonda explains that she goes out of her way to help other people, and to be nice to them, but this does not seem to help. Rhonda then stands up and begins to pace around your office at times using wild hand gestures to explain the circumstances that led up to her making the appointment with you. She describes the recent breakup with her boyfriend as traumatic and explains when we first met, he was the best guy in the world. He treated me really well. But he just became a complete monster! Even though he broke off the relationship with me, I was glad to see it end. I hate his guts!” Rhonda explains that her current financial situation is also precarious. She states that she recently purchased an automobile, and is not certain how she is going to pay for it. She states that she had a car that was repossessed last year at that time, and that she borrowed some money from a friend to help pay for the car; the friend later turned around and accused her of theft. “It was my friend’s fault. She told me she would loan me the money and then backed out. I only took the money because she said she would loan it to me … people just can’t go back on their word like that when other people are counting on them.” Rhonda reports that she was “always in trouble” as a kid. She states that people were always picking on her, to which she adds: the other kids my age were just stupid. They didn’t know how to have fun.” She says “I have always been impulsive, but it’s fun. Sometimes people can be such prudes … you only go around life once, so you have to make the best of it.”
