After watching this week’s Vignette practice video, I learned a lot of new and helpful information. The training videos in this section dealt with therapeutic counseling practices. One of my main takeaways from the videos was that the counselor’s emotional involvement during the session with the client is essential. The counselor cannot afford to be distracted or not fully engaged in the process for several reasons (OpenLearn from The Open University, 2015b). First, the client can feel it and deem uncomfortable when the counselor is distracted. The client needs to feel that the psychologist is willing to fully listen to all his or her problems and provide help with a particular technique. Secondly, the counselor cannot provide sufficiently qualified help without concentrating on the client’s story. There are a few tips for always staying present in sessions with the client. For example, one can practice being present in everyday situations by concentrating on the person’s activity at a particular moment.
The second essential knowledge for me was that all kinds of therapy are good in their own way (OpenLearn from The Open University, 2015a). Each of them works for a specific person and can be chosen on a strictly individual basis. To decide on a therapy method, the patient should visit several doctors and determine the most acceptable and comfortable approach for him or her. I have also learned from Vignette that individual therapy is very useful in avoiding conflicts (OpenLearn from The Open University, 2015c). This approach is very functional because each person has individual qualities and psychological needs and requires individualism in therapy. Thus, this week I went through the training materials on the therapeutic relationship with the client and gained helpful knowledge regarding quality counseling sessions.
After watching the modeling videos from the Vignette Practice 2 section, I have learned some important lessons for myself that I will apply in my consulting practice. The first video shows a simulated situation of how the initial appointment with a consultant psychologist takes place and the appropriate collection of information about the patient (Dr. Todd Grande, 2016a). From this video I learned how to correctly interview a patient for the first time. The consultant needs to establish a collaborative relationship with them and talk about his problems in detail. It is also essential to pay attention to each issue that the client mentions to avoid missing any vital information.
During the first appointment, the doctor should be as attentive as possible to the behavior and mood of the client. If they behave openly, one should just give him the opportunity to talk about everything that worries them without interrupting. If the patient is reluctant to share information about his condition, it is important to ask them leading questions and encourage discussion. The second video shows how to clarify the patient’s information about their family correctly (Dr. Todd Grande, 2016b). The doctor should reflect on the client’s words several times so that the latter feels heard. It is also essential to collect complete information about their family and not to miss any details. The reason for this is that the family often plays a vital role in shaping the psychological background of the patient. The consultant must have a full-fledged information base to prescribe high-quality and effective therapy.
While studying the Vignette Practice 3 video, I learned several important lessons about the proper conduct of consultations with clients. In the third part of the role-playing game, which simulates an appointment with a psychologist-consultant, the technique of collecting data on the patient’s social, medical, and mental history is demonstrated (Dr. Todd Grande, 2016c). From this video, I learned that a consultant should not just move from one part of collecting information to another but also formalize questions so that the client can respond to them in a detailed and broad manner. The purpose of using this technique is to allow the client to share more information with a consultant psychologist himself and without leading questions. In addition, during the appointment, the consultant should not focus on basic information about the client, such as age. He should collect the maximum amount of information about the history of mental and mental illnesses, the family, and the social background of the client. The fact is that essential information can be found from a person’s medical record, and the task of a psychologist is a broader and in-depth collection of information.
The fourth part of the role-playing video talks about properly collecting information about work history, training, and interaction with the law (Dr. Todd Grande, 2016d). During such information collection, the patient must understand why the question is being asked. It is necessary to explain to him that the psychologist is not going to subjectively evaluate his hearing at work or in training and the history of interaction with the law. All these data are needed solely to make a psychological portrait and a psychological picture of the patient. Thus, from this video cycle, I learned how to correctly collect certain information about a patient without causing him discomfort and without interrupting the therapeutic process.
References
Dr. Todd Grande. (2016). Intake and Assessment Role-Play Part 1 – Referral and Presenting Problems [Video].Web.
Dr. Todd Grande. (2016). Intake and Assessment Role-Play Part 2 – Family Relationships [Video]. Web.
Dr. Todd Grande. (2016). Intake and Assessment Role-Play Part 3 – Social, Medical, and Mental Health History [Video]. Web.
Dr. Todd Grande. (2016). Intake and Assessment Role-Play Part 4 – Education, Work, and Legal History [Video]. Web.
OpenLearn from The Open University. (2015). The Therapy Relationship – Key Ideas in Therapy (1/3) [Video]. Web.
OpenLearn from The Open University. (2015). Being Present in Therapy – Key Ideas in Therapy (2/3) [Video]. Web.
OpenLearn from The Open University. (2015). Beyond Individual Therapy – Key Ideas in Therapy (3/3) [Video]. Web.