CHC51015 Diploma of Counselling: Workplace Assessment Portfolio

This counselling portfolio presents a comprehensive overview of a student's work, encompassing various aspects of counselling practice. The portfolio begins with detailed patient case notes, outlining presenting problems, assessments, and treatment plans for multiple patients, including diagnoses of depression, anxiety, and other mental health conditions. It includes reflective journal entries on a presentation about legal and ethical requirements, highlighting feedback received and areas for improvement in communication and presentation skills. The portfolio also features interviews conducted to recognize and respect social and cultural diversity, along with corresponding reflective journals analyzing biases and communication strategies. Furthermore, it includes an information sheet on improving communication and reflections on communication skills, counselling therapies, and the student's own practice. Finally, the portfolio concludes with a case management plan, demonstrating the student's ability to develop and implement comprehensive care strategies for patients. The portfolio showcases the student's understanding of various counselling concepts and their ability to apply them in practical scenarios.

COUNSELLING

TABLE OF CONTENTS
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................3
PART A: Patient Case Notes.......................................................................................................3
PART B: Developing Mental health Plan...................................................................................5
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................7
PART A:......................................................................................................................................7
PART B: Reflective Journal entry of presentation......................................................................7
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................8
PART A: Interview for recognising and respecting social and cultural diversity.......................8
PART B: Reflective Journal for the interview............................................................................9
TASK 4..........................................................................................................................................12
PART A: Information Sheet......................................................................................................12
PART B: Improving Communication........................................................................................13
TASK 5..........................................................................................................................................14
PART A: Reflection on Communication Skills and Techniques..............................................14
PART B: Reflection on Counselling Therapies.........................................................................15
PART C: Reflection on Own Practice.......................................................................................16
TASK 6..........................................................................................................................................17
Case Management Plan..............................................................................................................17
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................21

TASK 1
PART A: Patient Case Notes
Patient 1:
Patient 2:
Problems Faced by the Patient
Low mood, anxiety issues, lacks interest in certain activities, Forgets minor things, headaches
Assessment
Patient is suffering from Clinical depression, first visit, Willing to take the treatment
Intervention
Diagnosis of thyroid, abdomen, chest and neurological system
Plan
Giving anti-depression medications- citalopram (Ghajar and et.al., 2017), diazepam, thyroid
medication - Eltroxin 50 mcg, Prescribed morning and evening walks, eating healthy whole grains
and lean protein, Avoiding sugar
Next appointment: After 1 month

Patient 3:
PART B:
Developing
Mental
health Plan
Mental Health
Treatment Plan
Name Valeria Smith Date of Birth 12.08.1958
Address 17 Fern Rd, Eagle Bay, WA Phone [phone]
Problems Faced by the Patient
Gets panic attacks, rapid heartbeat, unable to cope up with new surroundings, nervousness,
Assessment
Patient is ready for clinical treatment, slight progress, diagnosed with hyperthyroidism and show
symptoms of Generalised Anxiety Disorder.
Intervention
ECG, Blood test for adrenaline, thyroid and blood glucose level
Plan
Behavioural and cognitive therapy, relaxation therapy, psychotherapy, anti-anxiety medications,
sedatives during panic attacks- alprazolam, beta blockers to be prescribed in case of sweating and
palpitations, Eltroxin 50 mcg, Pre-diabetic care (Kaufman, K.R., and et.al., 2018).
Next appointment: After 2 weeks
Patient name Patricia James Date of birth 30.04.1980
Address 18 liberty Rd, palm Bay,
WA 5476
Contact no. [phone]
Session Date: Session No. 0012
Duration 1 hour Counsellor -
Problems Faced by the patient
Mood swings, Increased irritability, Sleeplessness, Reduced hunger, overthinking and stress
Assessment
Patient shows symptoms of Postnatal Depression
Intervention
Blood test for thyroid, assessment of depression and factor and risk analysis, questionnaire
screening test
Plan
Emphasis on exercise and healthy diet, SSRIS: Fluoxetine, Zolpidem, Eltroxin 75mcg,
Multivitamins (Molyneaux, E., and et.al., 2018).
Next appointment: after 7 weeks

6282
Issues The client suffers from low mood, anxiety issues, lacks interest in
certain activities like playing with kids which were earlier pleasurable,
forgets minor things, headaches, abdominal pain.
Patient History Substance abuse by the patient in the ages of mid 20s and 30s on a
repetitive basis, Frequent tobacco smoking habit
Previous records of postpartum depression, Thyroid issues, previous
case of a miscarriage
No family history of any mental illness, Father of the patient was
diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes.
Medications Anti-depressants: citalopram, Anti-anxiety medication: diazepam,
Thyroid medication: Eltroxin 50 mcg, Prescribed morning and evening
walks, eating healthy whole grains and lean protein, Avoiding sugar
(Handley, T.E., and et,al., 2019)
Risks and Co-morbidities Mild Self-harm tendencies were noted in the patient’s behaviour.
Patient suffers from Rheumatoid Arthritis in the knees and lower back
area.
Mental Health
Treatment Plan
Patient Name James turner Date of Birth 09.12.2003
Address 98 Mike Turner
Street PIMPAMA QLD 4202
Phone [phone]
Presenting issues Patient gets frequent panic attacks in irrelevant situations and shows
signs of rapid heartbeat, unable to cope up in new surroundings and
very shy in front of people, refrains from talking and conversation in
general, nervousness while doing any work outside comfort zone.
Patient history Police records of previous child abuse, cases of being bullied in
school, No substance abuse
No family history of any mental illness.
Medications Cognitive behavioural therapy, Benzodiazepines: alprazolam, beta
blockers for sweating and palpitations, Eltroxin 50 mcg, to get

engaged in hobbies, exercise, sports, Take enough sleep and healthy
diet ((Farrer, L.M., and et.al., 2016)
Mental Health
Treatment Plan
Patient Name Patricia James Date of Birth 30.04.1980
Address 18 liberty Rd, palm Bay, WA
5476
Phone [phone]
Presenting issues(s) Difficulty bonding with the baby, Frequent Mood swings, Insomnia,
loss of appetite, overthinking, loss of concentration.
Patient history Problems in conceiving and pre mature caesarean delivery.
Patients’ mother is diagnosed with Acute Alzheimer’s.
Medications SSRIS: Fluoxetine, Sleep medication: Zolpidem, Thyroid medication:
Eltroxin 75mcg, Multivitamins, Emphasis healthy diet, Self-care
through relaxation techniques, deep breathing, rhythmic exercises and
Yoga (Ogbo, F.A., and et.al., 2018)
Risks and Co-morbidities Patient is Diabetic and has acute spondylitis. No self-harm behaviour
noted.
TASK 2
PART A:
COVERED IN PPT
PART B: Reflective Journal entry of presentation
Reflective Journal Entry

The feedback for the presentation on legal and ethical requirements of the organisation NSW was both
positive and negative. For the PowerPoint, I was given a positive feedback but minor improvements like
use of appropriate points and removing unnecessary text was suggested by the supervisor. The
presentation skill and delivery were termed average and improvements in communication skill and clarity
in speaking were recommended. I responded to the feedback with positive attitude and acceptance of
flaws. The legal and ethical requirements at my workplace can be described as strict and appropriate in
context to healthcare services. The three requirements are Following the code of conduct, Anti-
discriminatory policies and record management (Hughes, 2019). The code of conduct implies following
core values in the premises of the institution which outline a set of rules and regulations, responsibilities,
norms and proper practices that have to be followed. These include appropriate behaviour with clients,
openness, respect, collaboration and empowerment. Taking care of safety, resource effectiveness,
excellence, fairness and equity, agility and responsiveness. The staff rules include practices to observe
professional codes of conduct, laws and ethics, performing duties efficiently & diligently, not be under the
influence of alcohol or drugs while at work, not take any unfair advantage of or exploit patients & clients,
carrying out our duties in a politically neutral manner, maintenance of security of confidential & sensitive
information and enhancing our professional skills, standards and best practices. The anti-discrimination
policies prohibit for any kind of discrimination on the grounds of age, gender, ethnicity, religion, color,
nationality etc. Protection of privacy of customers is a top priority and bound by rules. The records
management policy includes: creation, management and retention of documents appropriately, recording
management in accordance with relevant legislation and meeting obligations for accountability, ensuring
protection of interests of the Government, organization, its staff, clients & community. Potential work
practice improvements can be communication and feedback systems for reporting any unethical activity
within the workplace and penalty and appropriate actions on non-adherence of regulations and laws. The
improvements in the project that I can undertake are clarity and to-the point description of content
according to the needs of the target audience. I need to deliver the presentation more clearly and loudly
with appropriate language proficiency and explanatory attitude. An improvement in communication via
appropriate language workshops and speech practice is needed.
TASK 3
PART A: Interview for recognising and respecting social and cultural diversity
Person 1(patient)
The person belongs to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander community. The person is a patient at the
hospital for the diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases.

Q.1. What are the differences in social perspectives you face?
Q.2. What are the economic, social and political issues you go through?
Q.3. Do you see any discriminatory attitudes on the basis of culture or religion?
Response: I face a lot of problems in respect to getting basic services of healthcare as they are expensive
and geographically distant. There are lack of services and medical care. My education level is also low
and financial exclusion and digital illiteracy makes it difficult to cope up with the changing requirements.
There are lack of jobs and I am being underpaid. The infrastructure in my community is not well
developed and there are transportation and communication issues.
Person 2 (Colleague)
The person is an Indian immigrant and works in the organisation as a healthcare staff.
Q.1. What are the differences in social perspectives you face?
Q.2. What are the economic, social and political issues you go through?
Q.3. Do you face discriminatory attitudes on the basis of culture, religion, ethnicity or nationality?
Response: I am quite satisfied with the services in get in context to medical care, education, infrastructure
and other facilities. The pay gap is equal and there is no sexual discrimination. Although as an Indian I
face discrimination on the grounds of my nationality and ethnicity in my workplace which is quite vague
and indirect and hard to describe. Official recognition of qualifications is an issue and local employment
and work experience is unsatisfactory.
Person 3 (patient)
The person is a patient of diabetes and is Caucasian transgender of English and Scottish descent.
Q.1. What are the differences in social perspectives you face?
Q.2. What are the economic, social and political issues you go through?
Q.3. Do you see any discriminatory attitudes on the basis of culture, religion or sexual orientation?
Response: I am highly satisfied with the services I get including medical care, infrastructure and
education. Yes, I do face discrimination on the basis of my sexual orientation and always get bullied.
PART B: Reflective Journal for the interview
Reflective Journal of Interview 1
The interview of the man from Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander community
reflected upon a lot of socio cultural and economic problems in the country. The biases I
have in terms of social and cultural factors are that I assumed there are differences in the
way I needed to communicate with him.
The bias that I have for the community is that they don’t respect healthcare and modern
medicine and trust more upon their own traditional methods. They are more loyal about the

tribe and believe in a pagan lifestyle. I also felt an unconscious bias towards the community
prior to the interview. But while communicating with the person, I got to know that my
assumptions and biases were baseless. The man was more concerned about getting accepted
in the society, was in need of equal opportunities and development of the community
(Taylor and Guerin, 2019). I did communicate with him properly and respectfully so that he
could interpret me better. I emphasised on my syllables and I was more descriptive and
expressive while talking to him and used a moderate voice tone. The person didn’t know
English properly as he spoke in indigenous language. To counter this barrier, I used more
descripting method of interview through signs and emphasising on body language and
words. He did misunderstand me quite a lot due to issues in diversity and way of expression
and communication which is completely different. To address the unknown cultural
communication factors, I maintained a polite and direct tone. My own beliefs of respect of
culturally diversity and basic knowledge of cross-cultural communication helped me in
dealing with the situation and I also took help in interpretation from a friend with
appropriate knowledge. To improve my social awareness, I need to interact with more
diverse people and read more about the existing demographics of the country. To respect
and value inclusiveness, I should tend to be more sensitive to the expectations and
behaviour of other people. Overall, I need to maintain a positive attitude and respect for
every person in my workplace.
Reflective Journal of Interview 2
The interview with my colleague was quite successful in getting appropriate
responses of the questions. The colleague interviewed is an Indian immigrant who did the
schooling and higher education from Melbourne. In respect to the culture and ethnicity of
the colleague I did not have any specific biases, but I did presume the person to be
vegetarian and more sensitive to traditional and religious beliefs (Rose and Serr, 2019). In
order for effective communication, I was being more informal to avoid any disparity and in
line with the nature of relationship which is supposed to be friendly and not very formal as
the person is a colleague. For verbal communication I was using informal English but was
being descriptive and emphasizing on every word so that it is easier for the person to
understand my accent and dialect. The major issues that caused misunderstandings were my
tone of speaking and the purpose of the questions which the colleague was not able to
configure. The person seemed to answer the questions in less words and wasn’t descriptive.
To counter this, I repeated my questions for better responses which was later received
successfully. My own belief of respecting colleagues, having informal and amiable

relationships at work and recognising diversity helped me in communicating effectively
(Garcia and et.al., 2019). For improving communication, I need to increase my language
proficiency and understand how to speak with clarity and be more descriptive in order to get
right responses. To increase social awareness, I need to interact with more diverse people
and read more about the existing demographics of the country. To respect and value
inclusiveness, I should tend to be more sensitive to the expectations and behaviour of other
people. Overall, I need to maintain a positive attitude and respect for every person in my
workplace. Team building exercises can also improve employee engagement and relations.
Reflective Journal of Interview 3
While interacting with the person, I got all my answers in brief and was able to pin down the
response and crux of the response effectively. I didn’t have any biases and interacted
formally and normally with the person. I was unable to process that the person is being
discriminated on the grounds of sexual orientation as I presumed that the country is very
respectful towards the laws of the country which clearly have established las for transgender
community (Rahn, 2016). There were no language or communication barriers as such and
the person was satisfied with the behaviour and facilities of people on the basis of culture,
religion and ethnicity. I do not possess any biases on the grounds of sexual orientation and
consider all people equal, which helped me make a positive and amiable connection to the
respondent. To value diversity at workplace, I need to educate myself more about current
and global events and laws. I learned that one should treat others the way they want to be
treated. Getting an international exposure and interacting with different personalities from
across cultures can help in improving the social awareness. It can also be obtained by
creating a work environment which respects and includes difference, recognizes unique
contributions made by each and every individual (Fleet, Simmons and Bannister, 2017).
TASK 4
PART A: Information Sheet
Strategies to Promote ATSI Cultural Safety
Information Sheet
The cultural safety of the Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islander community is evidently not very safe and

protected and this has led to the threat related to multiple aspects for their community. Loss of culture and
importance of law and kinship amongst them were found to the two key issues or aspects (Arnold-Chamney
and Perry, 2019). Based on the research, there are certain strategies that can be recommended to them:
 The problem of the loss of culture needs to be addressed for the community by creating a separate
training session which teaches their dialect, their beliefs, practices etc. in the workplace so that
they do not feel alienated.
 The prevalence of law is important amongst these people who are increasingly being caught up in
the criminal activities and hence it is necessary to serve justice to them by making them choose
right over any other option.
 Making the understand the importance and relevance of judiciary system where they rust the
judgment and the unbiased ruling is the key to their upliftment and this can only be done by the
improvement in the existing practices where the rules are implemented equivalently and punishments
or rewards are awarded in a similar manner (Rheault and et.al., 2019).
 The aboriginals are very closely knit and hence rather than trying to distribute them, they can be
addressed together by organizing small workshops for them.
 Rather than increasing the mindset and practices which put the aboriginal Australians below the
other people, their rich culture and heritage needs to be presented before everyone where they need
to be encouraged and supported.
 It is necessary to make them a part of the society and involve them in the societies in which we live
and this is the only way in which their culture can be protected along with them.
By adopting the strategies developed above, the cultural safety of the aboriginals in the workplace can be
encouraged and secured.
PART B: Improving Communication
Barriers/challenges faced in communication
The major barrier that rose was that I was not able to clearly understand the terminologies that my colleague
was using. The colleague was often using a dialect that made me confused and I had to repeatedly ask for
clarification. Another major aspect of the barrier was the fact that the sentiment was misunderstood where if
she said something with kindness, I assumed it to be out of sympathy or as a pity (Balint and et.al., 2018).
Additionally, there was a significant difference of knowledge between the level while we were
communicating where my colleague was ignorant about many important things despite working in the same
organization which I was very well aware about.
Current communication strategies used
First of all I began with a formal introduction and I used all the basic strategies of using the right body
language, maintaining the posture, engaging in face to face communication etc. I first of all made myself

familiar with some basic terms that are used by aboriginals during communication and read about their
common habits, what they signify etc. so that I could analyze every moment of it (Lin and et.al., 2018). I
was able to immediately understand the state that she was in due to this cultural awareness and recognition
and hence I asked my colleague the questions accordingly where her every movement and gesture gave me
an idea of the thought process that she was going through.
Evaluation of these strategies
The strategies that I used were extremely effective in helping me gain the necessary results. Despite the
barriers that arose during our conversation, on an overall basis, I was able to address the key requirements of
the conversation (Brooks, 2020). These strategies helped in developing the necessary insight into the
thought process that she was developing and I was able to choose my questions accordingly which helped
me in gaining the necessary knowledge. the fact that I was culturally sensitive and aware also made her open
up more about the questions that I was asking and I was able to gain genuine answers rather than rote ones.
How communication can be improved
The communication could have been further improved if I had increased knowledge about the terms that the
commonly use and rather than highlighting the significant gap in the knowledge and awareness that we
have, I should have developed other strategy to avoid that situation which might have affected her mind
negatively.
TASK 5
PART A: Reflection on Communication Skills and Techniques
Student Reflection:
Overall, I can evidently state that my communication with the clients was productive and throughout the
different interactions that took place, I was able to reach to the crux of the main issues that was being
addressed. There were several instances where barriers rose in the communication that I undertook but I
was able to address each of them with the help of collaboration and cooperation with my clients
collectively. I used a number of counselling techniques in my interaction where I mainly engaged in
active listening and observing my clients, reframing, challenging, using opening and closing questions
etc. that helped me in getting through my clients (Campbell and et.al., 2017). These were the ones that I
could use easily and expertly where the overall implementation of these techniques did not look forced
but I was not very good at reflecting feelings and focussing on any particular issue. It made my work
sound superficial in my ears and this made me think that the client might also think that the entire
activity is useless. However, I have learnt a lot during these counselling sessions and amongst this was
the fact that use of reflecting techniques is actually instrumental in developing the introspective learning
where the client along with me as counsellor can evaluate themselves and their work done. I was also
able to learn the critical point that every client is different and despite having a number of common