Assignment Question
As a human services professional, you will witness many client challenges that, on the surface, seem insurmountable. In your role as an advocate, resource, and role model, you will be in a position of having to help clients find creative approaches to solving problems. You will also have an ethical responsibility to try to affect change on a larger scale. For this final project, you will create a slide presentation to raise awareness about a barrier to treatment experienced by many of your clients. This project will help you to start thinking about client issues at a community and policy level while demonstrating leadership, compassion, and advocacy to your clients. In this assignment, you will address the following course outcomes: Employ socially and culturally sensitive strategies in communications practices for strengthening human services delivery across diverse populations. Apply relevant legal and ethical standards to human services communications in demonstrating professional practice. Employ tools and strategies that articulate issues, deal with conflict, and establish rapport in human services communications. Develop human services communications using multiple modalities appropriate to varied audiences and messaging.
Scenario: You have just finished meeting with your client, Mary, to review her treatment plan and discuss why she has been missing appointments at your agency. Referring to the non-emergency medical transportation (NEMT) state-funded transportation program, Mary stated, “ The bus just doesn’t show up, or I have to wait, and sometimes I miss the appointment.” “Sometimes, I have to wait for hours to get a ride back home.” “They even forgot me last week.” “You know, back in my younger days, I would have picketed the state house and shown them a thing or two!” “I love the drivers though; they are kind, help me with my bags and walker, and are always polite and respectful.” Mary has few financial resources, significant mental health needs, and physical disabilities. Mary is also finding it difficult to pay for alternative transportation or to rely on friends and family, though they are sometimes available. The therapist has recommended that Mary come to a treatment group three times per week. Mary has only been able to attend three groups in the past two months. She states she would be willing to come to the therapy groups if she could find reliable transportation. For Mary, attending these groups would likely mean greater medical and mental health stability and, therefore, fewer emergency room visits, fewer hospital admissions, and a greater quality of life. As a human services professional, you already understand that Mary is facing a very real, personal, and difficult problem that may be challenging to remedy quickly. You also know from your experience with other clients that transportation is a systemic issue and not one unique to Mary. Because you have a friend who works at this transportation company, you have been able to arrange for an opportunity to present your concerns to them.
Prompt: For this final project, you will consider Mary’s situation, evaluate the transportation options and funding sources in your own community, and create a slide presentation for your meeting. This presentation will be developed for an audience of managers and bus drivers and may include dispatch and administrative staff. Your goal is to create a presentation that is professional, non-blaming, collaborative in style, and designed to elicit feedback and ideas from the meeting attendees. Your hope is that you are able to raise their awareness of the client’s perception of transportation needs on an individual level while also presenting in such a way that acknowledges transportation as a systemic issue and helps the audience better understand the challenges and barriers faced by the transportation company, including what they think needs to happen to be able to offer better services for clients. The project is divided into three milestones, which will be submitted at various points throughout the course to scaffold learning and ensure quality final submissions. These milestones will be submitted in Modules Two, Three, and Four. The final submission will occur in Module Seven.
Specifically, the following critical elements must be addressed in your final submission: Create a presentation (using PowerPoint or a similar presentation software) for an audience of managers, bus drivers, dispatchers, and administrative staff at the transportation company that reflects a communication style you feel best suits you, the audience, and the message. Be sure to address the following elements and include speaker notes on each slide for the purposes of narration. Speaker notes can be placed in the “notes” section of the slide deck, composed in a separate document with corresponding slide numbers, or narrated as a voiceover for each slide. Introduction Provide an overview that introduces the problem. What is your client’s specific complaint? Who does she feel is responsible for the challenges she is experiencing? Be sure to maintain your client’s confidentiality as you explain. Accurately articulate the effect of the problem on client treatment and use legally and ethically appropriate details to maintain client confidentiality. Use the details of your client’s story and the information you have received from other clients as examples to substantiate your claims. Share only the information that is legally and ethically appropriate to deliver your message without compromising client confidentiality. Identify social and cultural factors specific to your client that might affect use of transportation services. Compose speaker notes/narration that will engage the audience by asking them to describe similar stories they may have heard. Describe what you have learned about transportation services available in the area. Comprehensively discuss the transportation options that are available in your community for people with disabilities. Are there any limitations (such as minimum notice requirements for scheduling, transportation is to be used only for medical appointments, etc.) on its use? Comprehensively identify social and cultural factors that impact the use of transportation services. Are there community members that use wheelchairs and need an appropriate vehicle? Are there languages other than English represented in your community? Is transportation accessible to them? Comprehensively communicate the extent to which the funding policies for these transportation services affect their use. In other words, is there a financial limitation on the services each client receives or wishes to use? Is prior approval required? How are the providers and/or clients reimbursed by the state? Compose speaker notes/narration that will engage the audience by asking them to explain and discuss their understanding of the regulatory environment and requirements of the agency for provision of services. For example, what are the legal and ethical implications of not abiding by these policies? Comprehensively assess the impact of transportation services on treatment for clients. In other words, how might your agency’s ability to treat clients be affected if the problems your client noted persist?
Reflection Conclusion: Write a brief (no more than two pages) concluding reflection that addresses the following: Identify the key stakeholders other than the transportation company with whom you would need to interact in order to affect meaningful change to the service your client and others receive. In other words, who do you need to influence to ensure your clients’ transportation needs are being met adequately? Discuss how to appropriately adapt the presentation’s message and delivery method for gaining support from multiple audiences. Based on your research of available transportation options, discuss how you would appropriately adapt the presentation’s message and the most appropriate delivery method for garnering support from various audiences. For example, you might adapt this presentation for public officials, clients, state administrators, or your own colleagues. In order to cover this element comprehensively, ensure that you select at least one other audience in addition to the transportation company you have already covered. Differentiate specific social and cultural factors appropriate to delivering your message to diverse audiences. In other words, how will you communicate the intended message most effectively to a diverse population of audience members? Differentiate specific appropriate legal and ethical standards for delivering your message to the target audience. For example, what information might you be able to legally and ethically share with one group that you might be unable to share with another group? How will these considerations affect the message that you plan to deliver?
Milestones
- Milestone One: Introduction In Module Two, you will compose a short paper to introduce the problem the client is facing in the provided scenario, as well as the effect the problem is having on their ability to be treated by your agency. This milestone will be graded using the Milestone One Rubric.
- Milestone Two: Social and Cultural Factors In Module Three, you will create a short journal assignment describing the social and cultural factors that might affect the client’s use of transportation services in the provided scenario. This milestone will be graded using the Milestone Two Rubric.
- Milestone Three: Funding and Regulatory Environment Journal In Module Four, you will create a short journal assignment analyzing the current regulatory and funding policies that relate to the scenario of your final project. This milestone will be graded using the Milestone Three Rubric.
Final Submission: Presentation and Reflection In Module Seven, you will submit your final presentation and reflection. It should be a complete, polished artifact containing all of the critical elements of the final project. It should reflect the incorporation of feedback gained throughout the course. This submission will be graded using the Final Project Rubric.
What to Submit: Your presentation should be 10 to 15 slides long and 10 to 15 minutes in length. Your concluding reflection should be up to 2 pages in length, using 12-point Times New Roman font, double spacing, and one-inch margins. Incorporate APA citations, as necessary, throughout the presentation and reflection to support your work.
