Reference no: EM131360004

Case Scenario -

Family Julio (age 33) and Quianna Riverez (age 30) live in Chicago, Illinois with their five children, ages one, three, four, seven, and 15. Both parents dropped out of high school when Quianna became pregnant with their oldest child, Rico. Initially they lived with Quianna's parents, later getting an apartment in the Englewood area of the city, where they still currently reside. Right after they moved into their own residence, they were relieved to be on their own, in part due to the chronic conflict between Julio and Quianna's parents that continues to this day. A few weeks after moving to Englewood, they realized that the violence the neighborhood was known for would make an indelible mark on each of their lives. Julio was shot in the chest when rival gang members fought for turf in front of the family's apartment. Although he survived, he was left with lingering health issues resulting from extensive scar tissue in his lungs. For her part, Quianna continues to struggle with the emotional impact of Julio's shooting. Both parents have seen plenty of violence near their home, yet they feel trapped since there is no money for daily necessities, much less relocation. Their feelings of helplessness and fear have intensified since a shoot-out last week left three dead, including a one-year-old infant in a stroller. The incident played out in front of the entire family as they were getting off a city bus. The family narrowly missed being hit by gunfire themselves and had to spend several hours on the scene being interviewed by the police. Julio's family moved away from Chicago shortly after Rico's birth. They have returned to the Miami, Florida area since it allows them to see the extended family that immigrated to Miami from Cuba.

They are estranged from Julio and Quianna because of the couple's choice to not marry and their lack of participation in the Catholic Church. Quianna's family does continue to live in Chicago. Although they are accepting of the couple's decision to not marry, they resent the fact that the couple does not try to attend family gatherings, and they wish that Quianna had married an African American man to maintain the family's ethnic and cultural heritage. Julio has great trouble being around Quianna's family because he thinks they are controlling and they always share unrequested advice that he does not wish to follow. For these reasons and others, the couple receives no social or financial support from either side of the family. Julio currently works two part-time jobs; one is at a local diner where he is a cook, and the other is at a factory, where he works third shift as a maintenance person. Quianna has always stayed home to raise the children. The couple's finances are not adequate to pay for the necessities of life such as groceries, housing, and utilities. In fact, their utilities were shut off at the beginning of April due to nonpayment. It is becoming increasingly frequent that Julio must walk to and from work due to the family's inability to pay the fees for public transportation. A major stressor for the couple is that Julio's original language is Spanish and he continues to struggle to communicate in English. When the couple experiences conflict, Julio often shuts down or leaves the residence due to his challenges in expressing his thoughts and feelings. All the couple's children speak English exclusively and Julio feels that this limits his authority as a father. Quianna reports that she is tired all the time and that she is left alone to deal with the children on her own. She reports that she has been particularly fatigued since the birth of her youngest child, Cedric. Adding to her fatigue is her difficulty in sleeping that she attributes to nightmares related to Julio's shooting years ago, which has been compounded by the recent violence the family witnessed. Per her, all the children are unruly and she reports not having the energy to deal with them anymore. Quianna holds fond memories of her own childhood when she was intimately connected to and supported by her family. She reminisces about their family gatherings and church-related activities. She wishes that she could provide a similar childhood for her children. She states that she is very concerned about Rico, who has had several run-ins with the law because he repeatedly violates curfew and the police suspect that he is affiliated with a local gang. Rico is often truant and is at high risk for being held back this year. For his part, Rico sees no value in completing high school. He thinks that trying to complete high school is futile and imagines that he will follow in his parents' footsteps and drop out of school eventually. Community the Englewood neighborhood of Chicago is located on the city's south side, approximately seven miles south of the Loop. While most of its residents are African American, there has been an influx of diverse groups. At its height, Englewood had nearly 100,000 residents, but in the past decade or so the population has significantly declined, leaving just over 30,000 residents.

The area is plagued by violence, poverty, and unemployment. Numerous gangs operate in the neighborhood. Even those who resist the pressure to affiliate with gangs are at an increased risk of violence. If gang members reside on a block, there exists an assumption among rival gang members that all others who reside on the block are in some way connected to the gang who operates in the area. There have been more than 17 murders in the past year in Englewood, along with countless other shootings, rapes, acts of gang violence, and other types of violence. Despite the negative conditions that exist in the community, there are many residents who have formally organized to address the issues that leave the residents at risk. An example of the community outreach efforts is the online Englewood Portal. On this website, community members can find helpful organizations including social services, block clubs, and faith-based organizations, as well as community resources and employment opportunities. Another Chicago-based organization, Cease Fire Illinois-a Cure Violence organization-has an increasing presence in Englewood.

Prompt Based on your analysis of the case scenario, develop an effective care plan to address both the family and the community in need. Furthermore, consider how you, as the practitioner, would protect yourself from the negative personal impacts of working with victims of traumatic situations when developing your self-care plan.

Carefully analyze the case scenario above and address the following critical elements:

I. Introduction to Case Scenario

Provide a brief overall assessment of the case scenario, ensuring the following questions are answered:

1. What family and community system factors are driving the negative issues in the scenario?

2. What strengths are apparent in the family and community that can provide leverage to overcome the issues?

3. What small groups are present in the community that may help to facilitate change? 4. What advocacy efforts are being used at the community level?

B. Summarize the assessment of interventions, resources, and potential outcomes, ensuring the following questions are answered:

1. What interventions would you apply to ameliorate the issues represented in the scenario?

2. How might you best address trauma, family roles, and culture?

3. What resources are currently available, or what resources could be created to effectively scaffold the family and community?

4. What family and community strengths might you leverage to address the identified issues?

5. Given your plan, what outcomes do you expect?

II. Systemic Analysis of the Family

Select one or more systemic family analysis instrument(s) (i.e., sociograms, culturagrams, ecomaps, genograms, etc.) for determining what is appropriate in the case scenario. In other words, which assessment instrument(s) would best flesh out the issues that exist in this scenario? Use the selected instrument(s) and apply it to the case scenario.

1. What information did you derive from the assessment?

2. How will your selected assessment help to frame your approach to working with the family?

B. Design a human services care plan to address the family needs identified in the systemic family analysis, ensuring that the least intrusive and restrictive interventions are adopted. Given the results of your assessment(s), what systemic family strategies would best align with the identified needs and the family's level of resilience? Why?

C. Identify and assess available resources to ameliorate identified family needs. In other words, what are your recommendations regarding available resources based on the case scenario? D. Will the resource plan that was designed in your assessment be sufficient to meet the identified needs? Explain why.

E. Evaluate the potential outcomes that may be derived from the applied interventions and resources. In other words, how would the applied interventions and resources alleviate the family needs represented in the case scenario?

III. Systemic Analysis of the Community

Select one or more systemic community analysis instrument(s) (i.e., sociograms, culturagrams, ecomaps, genograms, etc.) for determining what is appropriate in the case scenario. In other words, which assessment instrument(s) would best flesh out the systemic cultural, social, economic, and educational issues and strengths that exist in this scenario? Use the selected instrument(s) and apply it to the case.

1. What information did you derive from the assessment?

2. How will your selected assessment help to frame your approach to working within the community?

B. Design a human services care plan to address the community needs identified in the case scenario. Given the results of your assessment(s), what systemic community strategies would best align with the identified needs and strengths? Why?

C. Identify and assess available resources to ameliorate identified community needs. In other words, what are your recommendations regarding available resources based on the case scenario?

D. Evaluate the potential outcomes that may be derived from the applied interventions and resources. Given the results of your assessment(s), what systemic community strategies would best align with the identified needs and strengths?

IV. Practitioner Reflection

What are the case-specific risks to the practitioner's well-being? In other words, how could vicarious trauma interrupt your personal or professional functioning? B. Select and utilize a trauma-informed assessment instrument to assess potential personal and professional exposure to trauma-laden materials and situations.

Design a personal and professional self-care plan to address ongoing exposure to trauma-laden material and situations. Take into consideration the specific ethical considerations you need to be aware of as you work with those who have trauma-laden histories and the specific trauma informed strategies you could adopt to enhance your own awareness, balance, and connection.

Guidelines for Submission:

Your family/community care plan and self-care plan submission must be 8-10 pages in length (plus a cover page and references) and must be written in APA format. Use double spacing, 12-point Times New Roman font, and one-inch margins. Include at least four references cited in APA format.