Initial Post Instructions
Please read the assigned article, “Clinical Case Discussion: Screening and Brief Intervention for Drug Use in Primary Care” by Leah et al. (2010)
and review the opinions of four expert clinicians who contributed their thoughts about a man with unhealthy alcohol and drug use who presented for an initial visit to primary care with complaints of heartburn and a recent admission for chest pain.
Then, read the case of Peter from Chapter 11 of Fetting (2016), also provided below. Choose one of the screening tools listed in Lesson 3.1 and complete a screening and assessment of Peter.
Peter was a 50-year-old clinical social worker who entered treatment for his depression, pressure, and anxiety that had overwhelmed him during the last six months. “I’ve never skipped a beat as a husband, father, or social worker, but the sense of dread and quicksand surrounding me is becoming unbearable. My wife and two children are seeing it creep in more and more around me.” At first Peter felt that they were too sensitive about some understandable mood shifts due to his administrative responsibilities supervising the digitizing of clinical case records in his outpatient facility, as well as the pressure he felt with some physical and psychological problems with his two boys. Eventually, Peter told me, “Now I agree something is going on with me.”
Peter was mild-mannered, sensitive, and hard-working. I registered an impact of an overly self-sacrificing individual, one who was not overly assertive, and all too easily carried the burdens of others. I wondered how he expressed his moods to himself, his wife and family, his friends, and his colleagues at work. He seemed resigned to carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders. I asked him if that was what he felt too. He responded, “That’s exactly how I feel. The digitizing of our records has been hell. We are on our third go-around, and I see no relief in sight. My wife, while strong-willed, is not self-assured, and I worry about her free-floating anxiety and self-medicating habits with marijuana and sleeping pills at night. But mostly now, I’m worried about me.”
Peter continued, “Both of my parents drank too much and for too long, and so I’m a very controlled drinker. I do not drink during the week and allow myself one beer or glass of wine on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday nights. But the problem is I’ve increased that to two or three drinks in the last six months, and I know I’m self-medicating for something. I can’t have it go on.”
Finally, summarize your results and upload a copy of the assessment to this forum for your peers and instructor to review.
Initial posts should be a minimum of 200–250 words in length.