Psychological disorders that appear in men Essay Example

prefer to see a counselor only once or twice to gather information to solve their own problems. In an interview with a doctor from a rural psychiatry/counseling clinic, she revealed that in a span of four months, only one male voluntarily sought counseling. The clinic encountered over 30 cases per day, with about half of them asking for counseling. She further explained that most men who came to the clinic were court-ordered, and the majority of them were sent due to claiming insanity as a defense in criminal cases. Instead of seeking help in sharing their issues, many men aim to obtain information that can help them resolve their problems.

In order to maintain their independence, work forces are hesitant to share their personal thoughts with others to build trust and connection in relationships. Instead, Jamaican work forces often choose to suppress their emotions by turning to alcohol, cigarettes, or marijuana. The issue of men's reluctance to seek counseling is often attributed to their socialization. Typically, boys are not taught to express their emotions but rather to be tough and stoic.

Despite society's acceptance of girls who are considered to be "tomboys," the same level of acceptance is not given to boys who display feminine traits, leading to a socialization that discourages boys from expressing their emotions. In Jamaican society, which is generally homophobic, any expression of emotions by men is met with skepticism. Men in Jamaica are taught to prioritize aggression over nurturing and as a result, emotional expression is not encouraged. This socialization leads to a lack of sensitivity to the needs of both themselves and others, causing men to often deny or downplay their

physical and mental health issues. This denial has resulted in a significant number of men, as reported in a study by the Department of Community Heath and Psychiatry of the University of the West Indies published in the North American Journal of Science in January 2010 by Paul Bourne, being unwilling to seek medical attention since 1988.

The study's survey centered on the perceptual experiences of rural males concerning prostate cancer. Results showed that 71% possessed knowledge about prostate health, while only 27% received a prostate examination. Notably, 44% of participants were medical professionals such as physicians and nurses. The reluctance of males to seek medical help is deeply rooted in their culture, where illness is seen as a sign of weakness and societal expectations promote displays of strength.

Poor health is therefore attributed to the Southern Cross for endangering a man's masculinity (Bourne 2010).

• To address male resistance to counseling, the following models are suggested.
• The psychosocial model aims to educate men about the societal and cultural influences that contribute to this resistance.
• The cognitive behavior model aims to 'clarify thinking errors' by using cognitive restructuring and behavioral techniques for change.

Group therapy is also recommended to allow men to share and connect with their emotions in a non-threatening environment with other men. In Jamaica, efforts have been made by Fathers Incorporated to bring men together and promote their emotional side. This organization, founded in 1991 with 17 men, was created to challenge the stereotype of irresponsible fathers.

The organization currently has more than 70 members and

serves as a model for workforces to express their emotions while remaining strong and independent.

Bibliography

1. Bourne, Paul. Rural male wellness workers in Jamaica: Knowledge attitudes and a pattern toward prostate malignant neoplastic disease testing. North American Journal of Medical Science January 2010. Volume 2. Number 1. pages 11 - 17.
2. Gladding, Samuel. 2009. Reding A Comprehensive Profession. Merill Upper Saddle River USA.
3. O'Brien, Marshall. 2004.

Reding Men. National Men and Family Relationships Forum. Sydney Australia.

Procedure Notes

The curative procedure involves the interactions between the client and healer, often with differing perceptions. To avoid confusion, a structure must be created jointly by the client and healer. This structure will outline the processes, parameters, and expectations involved.

The structure of the counseling relationship has several important purposes, including clarifying the relationship, determining roles and responsibilities, and protecting the rights of both the client and counselor. One aspect of this structure is the counselor's need to keep accurate records. These notes serve multiple purposes, including ethical, legal, and clinical considerations. The main goal of maintaining these records is to provide high-quality services to clients and ensure continuity of care if other professionals become involved ( Coney 2009 ) .

Having accurate, well-organized, and comprehensive records is crucial for easily assessing the level of care provided to the client. From a clinical standpoint, these records can offer valuable information about the client's history and serve as a foundation for reviewing and planning interventions. Additionally, maintaining ethical records allows practitioners to deliver high-quality care to their clients (Corey 2009).

Legal requirements for

record keeping may exist, and these records are important in legal cases related to malpractice, consent, custody, or court-related situations. It is crucial for healthcare providers to maintain accurate and complete records as they are the foundation of patient care when a provider is absent. This guarantees continuity of care and enables the provider to manage risks and defend against malpractice lawsuits. In lawsuits against healthcare providers, having documented interactions with the patient is vital. Proper documentation provides stronger defense by offering evidence of the provided level of care.

It is crucial to keep records for multiple reasons, including monitoring in managed care facilities or clinics and situations requiring direct supervision. Notes are essential for effective monitoring and accurate reimbursement. If the records fail to provide a complete description of all services given, a managed care company may ask for reimbursement for the provided services (Corey 2009).

This regulation would also apply to therapists in individual practice.

Two types of notes have been identified:

According to the University of Nebraska Medical Centre (UNMC) policy guidelines for psychotherapy notes, "psychotherapy notes are process notes created by a licensed mental health practitioner for his own use during patient treatment. These process notes capture the therapist's feelings about the patient, contain details about therapy conversations considered to be inappropriate for the medical record, and are used by the therapist for future sessions." These notes should be stored in a secure place and may be destroyed by the therapist when they are no longer needed. These notes should not be a part of the medical record.

UNMC uses advancement notes to organize a portion of the client's permanent medical records, separate from client notes.

These advancement notes should include contact information, informed consent, written intervention program, referral/intake study, chronological documentation of intervention in advancement notes, trial consequences, session agenda, medical prescriptions, and terminative information.

The content of these notes will vary depending on the intended audience. It is important to consider multiple audiences when writing these notes.

• The likely audience includes:
• The healer - he/she will refer back to these notes during the course of intervention
• The client may want to review the notes

In these advancement notes, psychologists document their work in order to assist clients with their issues.

These notes should be concise and relate to the intervention and method already outlined in the intervention program. Important events, medication, and changes will be included in these notes. Brief assessments of client status and progress should also be incorporated. It is preferable that these notes are written immediately after the session and kept in chronological order.

The most common formats for advancement notes are BIRP, BIOP, SOAP, and DAP. In BIRP, the healer notes the client's behavior, the intervention used, the client's response, and the plan for further intervention. BIOP is similar to BIRP but instead of noting the client's response, the healer documents observations. SOAP allows for more flexibility and includes subjective and objective information, the healer's assessment or analysis, and the plan. DAP follows the same format as SOAP but combines subjective and objective information into data.

The American Psychiatric Association (APA) distinguishes between psychological or process notes and advancement or patient notes. According to a document titled Psychotherapy Notes Provision and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)

Primary Rule (2002), the APA states that psychological notes are created for use by mental health professionals and are kept separate from the rest of the person's medical record.Psychotherapy notes do not include prescriptions or monitoring, counseling sessions' start and stop times, test results, treatment modes and frequencies... This information is included in the patient's general record and is available for billing purposes, etc. According to this document, "process notes" is an ambiguous term. The American Psychiatric Association states that psychological or process notes are valuable to the therapist who created them and may contain intimate or personal content, as well as details of fantasy and dreams, interaction during the therapy process, sensitive information about others in the client's life, the therapist's hypotheses and guesses, and topics discussed in therapy (APA document, 2001). Although there has been debate among therapists regarding the need to maintain two sets of notes, HIPAA has introduced changes that define psychotherapy notes and protect them from being readily disclosed to the client, the courts, or anyone else.According to the HIPAA regulations in subdivision 45CFR164.524, psychotherapeutic or procedure notes, which are created by mental wellness professionals, do not include basic intervention and record keeping. These notes are also not meant to be disclosed to the client or anyone else. Psychotherapy/process notes can be written in any form that is helpful to the therapist and do not need to be reviewed by others. In these notes, the therapist has the freedom to elaborate on their thoughts and feelings, intuitions, and hypotheses. The protection provided by HIPAA regulations allows the therapist to have more control over how process notes are written since the

primary audience is the therapist themselves.

According to HIPPA regulations, when the client gives consent for treatment, they also allow the therapist to keep notes that are not accessible to them. These notes, known as process notes, capture the therapist's feelings and are used for planning future sessions. This underscores the importance of these notes in guiding the therapist's approach rather than blindly searching for solutions.

Bibliography

• Corey, Gerald. 2009. Theory and Practice of Counselling and Psychotherapy. Brooks/Cole. Belmont. U.S.A.
• Resource Document.

Psychotherapy Notes Provision of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Rule 2002 American Psychiatric Association. Washington DC. USA

Legal Ethical Issues

Counselors must acquire legal and ethical skills to provide professional services to clients.

The text emphasizes that being knowledgeable about the laws and ethics of the counseling profession does not automatically make a counselor ethical practitioners. These codes and laws do not remove the responsibility of decision-making from the counselor. However, counselors must understand the ethical requirements of the profession and be able to interpret them to apply them appropriately in specific situations. The importance of understanding legal and ethical standards has been highlighted since 1988, when a membership survey of American School Counselors identified the need for ethics information as one of their main concerns (Heney, Remley, 1990).

The reading profession as a whole is increasingly recognizing the need for ethical practice. This is partly due to the growing number of legal proceedings involving mental health

professionals. In addition, there is a push for greater professionalism, requiring counselors to stay updated. Ethical decisions often involve ambiguous situations with no clear right or wrong answers. What may be the right answer in one situation may not apply to a similar situation. Social changes bring about new issues and perceptions that require new approaches.

In this relatively unstable environment, a counselor must navigate the appropriate action to take in each situation. Therefore, they must have a foundation, a kind of model, to guide them. Knowledge of ethical and legal standards serves as such a model. Rather than being seen as an obstacle to professional behavior, the legal and cultural standards should be viewed as aspirational ethics - a higher level of ethical practice that prioritizes the client's best interests (Coney, 2009). Some professionals even argue that the effectiveness of a counselor is tied to their ethical knowledge (Galdding, 2009). There are situations where counselors choose to deviate from personal ethical standards.

When counselors are faced with a dilemma, they may feel anxious, uncertain, and confused about how to act (Gladding, 2009). This can sometimes lead to unethical behavior and potential legal action. To avoid these problems, counselors need to be aware of and utilize legal and ethical codes. While some literature treats legal and ethical knowledge as one unit, it is important for counselors to specifically understand both counseling and the law. The counseling profession is also governed by the law, which refers to the rules that are binding on members of a country, state, or community. Although there are no specific laws that apply directly to the helping professions, there are court decisions in

different countries that affect the counseling profession. For example, in Jamaica, the legal minimum age for marriage is 16 years. If a counselor suggests marriage as an option for someone under 16 years of age, they would be breaking the laws of the country.

In certain situations, a counselor may want to protect client confidential information, but would be breaking the law if they fail to report child abuse. While laws regarding guidance may not cover every issue, counselors must still adhere to specific legal guidelines. These guidelines vary from state to state and even within states. If there is a conflict between ethical codes and the law, the law takes precedence. This commonly occurs when disclosing information would violate confidentiality but is necessary to prevent harm.

Two examples of these situations are child abuse and suicide.

Bibliography

• Corey, Gerald. 2009. Issues and Ethics in the Helping Professions. Brooks/Cole Belmont USA.
• Gladding, Samuel. 2009. Counseling A Comprehensive Profession. Merill Upper Saddle River USA.
• Huey, Wayne C ; Remley, Theodore P., Jr. 1990. Ethical and Legal Issues in School Counseling.
• Reding.

Eric Clearinghouse on Counselling and Personnel Services Ann Arbor MI

Therapeutic Setting

The physical environment in which reding takes topographic point should be designed to advance the guidance procedure. The trappingss layout an size of the room can raise outlooks or topographic point bounds on the client. A client may experience constrained by a little room or even insecure in a room that is non easy accessible. On the

other manus, a room which is excessively exposed could besides be restraining.

• When creating an optimal physical environment for counseling, the healer should consider several factors.
• This includes the building itself - its location and surroundings.
• Additionally, the waiting area should be taken into account - the furnishings, layout, and what activities the client can engage in while waiting.
• The layout and furnishings of the counseling room are also important aspects to consider, as well as the objects present in the room.
• Furthermore, other factors such as the choice of colors, use of music or scents, and appropriate lighting should be considered.

Counseling sessions usually take place in a dedicated room, although it is stated that counseling can occur anywhere. Typically, professional counselors have a specific room designated for counseling purposes. While the design of these rooms may vary among counselors, it is crucial that a counseling room is comfortable and visually appealing. Both the counselor's chair and the client's chair should be comfortable and similar in height. This ensures that neither party feels overbearing towards the other. The chairs should also be positioned at an angle that allows the client and counselor to face each other without being directly opposite. In this position, the client has the option to maintain eye contact with the counselor or look away if desired.

According to Hasse (1970), the average comfortable distance between counselors and clients in the United States of America is found to be within

30 to 39 inches. Some counselors may choose to sit behind a desk, but this is generally not preferred as it can create a barrier and give the counselor an authoritative position. Instead, having a low table nearby is recommended. This table can be used for placing items that the client may be carrying, such as a bag or purse. It is also advisable to have tissues easily accessible in the counseling office. Additionally, incorporating plants and objects can help liven up the room.

Many counselors display their certificates on the wall, which allows clients to see their qualifications and instills confidence in the counselor's ability to provide the desired care. It is preferable for counselors to have their own personal office space, either in a separate room or separated by a tasteful room divider. This personal office would house a filing cabinet for client records and a workstation.

A specialist counselor would have specific items in the counseling room. For example, a child psychologist might have toys and games, and the room could be decorated with child-like ornaments. Regardless of the specific items or their arrangement in the room, both the counselor and client need to remain undisturbed during sessions. To achieve this, the counselor would establish protocols to manage phone calls, prevent others from entering the room, and maintain a noise level that does not cause distraction or disruption. While loud sounds can be distracting for both client and counselor, some suggest that music can be beneficial. Although therapeutic sessions typically rely on spoken words to convey meaning and emotion, La Tom suggests that incorporating other sounds, such as music, could enhance the connection between

client and therapist and promote healing.

"When organizing reading groups, it is important to consider the comfort of both the leader and the members, as well as ensuring that there is enough space to create an environment conducive to natural group interactions. Regardless of the size of the room, the session should be the only activity taking place in that room. The leader should establish themselves clearly as the leader to avoid any ambiguity about who is in charge. This ambiguity could arise, for example, in a school setting where a principal invites a counselor to address a problem with students. After the introduction, the principal may stay in the room, causing confusion about who has authority."

It is ideal to have the seats arranged in a round pattern, whether participants are seated at a table or not. This circular arrangement allows group members to visually connect and reinforces the sense of group unity (Glass, 2010). The size of the room should be appropriate – if the room is too small, it can increase anxiety, especially in children and adolescents, and cause disruptive behavior in more dissatisfied group members. If there is too much space between group members, the group may become unmanageable, and members may interpret this as the counselor wanting to distance themselves from the group. The way group members are seated can indicate something about how the group operates. A counselor who allows members to choose their seats instead of assigning them may be indicating flexibility or that members have freedom to choose and must face the consequences of their choice.

When it is necessary to change the location for a group session, the counselor

should discuss this with the group members at the beginning of the session. If this is not done, members could feel insecure and may express this insecurity during the sessions. Whether the therapeutic setting is small or large, modern or old-fashioned, in a beautifully decorated room or a dimly lit room, the area should be clean, private, and provide soundproofing to ensure auditory and usually visual privacy as mandated by ethical codes and to ensure maximum client self-disclosure (Gladding 2009).