Course Number and Title:
HMS 225 Interviewing/Counseling Skills
Campus Location
- Dover
- Georgetown
- Wilmington
Prerequisites
Prerequisite: HMS 122
Course Credits and Hours
3 credit(s)
3 lecture hours/week
1 lab hours/week
Course Description
In this course, students learn helping skills needed in human service settings. The emphasis is on the practical acquisition of interviewing, counseling, and case management skills.
Core Course Performance Objectives (CCPOs)
- Explain the characteristics, issues, and tasks associated with stages of the helping process: engagement, problem identification, biopsychosocial information gathering, assessment, service planning, implementation, evaluation, and termination. (CCC 1, 2, 3, 4; PGC 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
- Demonstrate interviewing, counseling, and helping skills, including responses and leads such as restatement, reflection, explanation, interpretation, and types of questions. (CCC 1, 2, 3, 4; PGC 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
- Employ counseling skills to conduct a therapeutic interview, assessing client needs and strengths. (CCC 1, 2, 4; PGC 2, 3, 4, 5, 7)
- Formulate a written service plan to meet identified client needs. (CCC 1, 2, 4; PGC 1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
- Assess the strengths and weaknesses of the client’s counseling intervention, and develop a plan for improvement. (CCC 2; PGC 2, 3, 4, 5, 7)
- Describe the elements and parameters of confidentiality and informed consent. (CCC 2, 4; PGC 2, 4, 5)
- Explain appropriate record-keeping and documentation guidelines, practices, and common requirements. (CCC 1, 2, 4; PGC 1, 2, 3, 4)
- Express sensitivity to and respect for human diversity in the helping process, including the impact of race, ethnicity, class, culture, gender, sexual orientation, religion, physical or mental disability, national origin, and the experience of social injustice. (CCC 2, 3, 4; PGC 2, 3, 4, 5)
- Explain the use of the professional self, including the disciplined use of self and its necessity for effective professional relationships. (CCC 2, 3, 4; PGC 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
- Apply the values, principles, and standards of the human services professional code of ethics. (CCC 1, 2, 3, 4; PGC 2, 3, 4, 5)
See Core Curriculum Competencies and Program Graduate Competencies at the end of the syllabus. CCPOs are linked to every competency they develop.
Measurable Performance Objectives (MPOs)
Upon completion of this course, the student will:
- Explain the characteristics, issues, and tasks associated with stages of the helping process: engagement, problem identification, biopsychosocial information gathering, assessment, service planning, implementation, evaluation, and termination.
- Define the stages of the helping process.
- State the goals for both the helper and clients for each stage.
- Identify appropriate helper responses for each stage.
- Demonstrate interviewing, counseling, and helping skills, including responses and leads such as restatement, reflection, explanation, interpretation, and types of questions.
- Use effective counseling and/or helping responses: attending, information questions, paraphrasing, responding to feelings, insight probes, and problem-solving through in-class role plays and out-of-class practice sessions.
- Use effective counseling skills such as listening, attending, empathy, and genuineness during in-class role plays and out-of-class practice sessions.
- Employ counseling skills to conduct a therapeutic interview, assessing client needs and strengths.
- Illustrate the use of appropriate and effective skills by participating in in-class role plays.
- Summarize the client’s needs and strengths after each role play.
- Arrange and conduct out-of-class recorded practice-helping sessions.
- Transcribe all of the helper responses, and identify each by the type of response and/or skill it demonstrates.
- Formulate a written service plan to meet identified client needs.
- Construct a written service plan to identify client needs from a biopsychosocial perspective.
- Analyze the client’s needs and strengths, including preventative services where applicable.
- Assess the strengths and weaknesses of the client’s counseling intervention, and develop a plan for improvement.
- Verbally critique in a constructive manner the strengths and weaknesses of the skills and intervention that were displayed after each in-class role play.
- Discuss ways in which improvement might be made to the counseling intervention.
- Analyze in writing a brief statement of the strengths and weaknesses of the counseling skills and responses following each recorded session.
- Develop a plan of improvement with references to specific responses from the transcript.
- Describe the elements and parameters of confidentiality and informed consent.
- Explain the importance of confidentiality within a client-helper relationship.
- State the reasons and conditions in which confidentiality must be broken.
- Define informed consent.
- Explain the importance of informed consent when entering into a client-helper relationship.
- Create a written document of informed consent to be used with each of the practice sessions.
- Create a written document of confidentiality to be used with each of the practice sessions.
- Explain appropriate record-keeping and documentation guidelines, practices, and common requirements.
- Explain the importance of record-keeping and documentation.
- Identify various documents that are appropriate and/or necessary to maintain in client records.
- Explain the guidelines of record-keeping, including confidentiality, right to privacy, and the conditions in which records must be released and/or shared.
- Create a client file, and maintain appropriate client records within the files.
- Express sensitivity to and respect for human diversity in the helping process, including the impact of race, ethnicity, class, culture, gender, sexual orientation, religion, physical or mental disability, national origin, and the experience of social injustice.
- Conduct in-class role plays and out-of-class taped sessions with a diverse range of clients.
- Demonstrate sensitivity to the identified concepts.
- Discuss awareness of the impact of diversity to the client-helper process.
- Explain the use of the professional self, including the disciplined use of self and its necessity for effective professional relationships.
- Explain the importance of self-awareness as it impacts the client-helper relationship.
- Identify characteristics necessary to exhibit as a professional.
- Critique the importance of professional characteristics and their impact on the client-helper relationship.
- Analyze one’s personal strengths and weaknesses for each of the characteristics.
- Develop a plan for improvement.
- Apply the values, principles, and standards of the human services professional code of ethics.
- Apply appropriate ethical principles from a code of ethics (American Counselors Association [ACA], American Psychiatric Association [APA], National Organization of Human Services [NOHS], National Alliance of Social Workers [NASW], National Association for Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counselors [NAADAC]), during in-class role plays, out-of-class practice sessions, and case vignettes.
Evaluation Criteria/Policies
The grade will be determined using the Delaware Tech grading system:
| 90-100 |
= |
A |
| 80-89 |
= |
B |
| 70-79 |
= |
C |
| 0-69 |
= |
F |
Students should refer to the
Catalog/Student Handbook for information on the Academic Standing Policy, the Academic Integrity Policy, Student Rights and Responsibilities, and other policies relevant to their academic progress.
Final Course Grade
Calculated using the following weighted average
|
Evaluation Measure
|
Percentage of final grade
|
|
Exams (Summative) (Equally Weighted)
|
20%
|
|
Capstone Tape/Project (Summative)
|
60%
|
|
Formative (Role play, class participation activities, homework, quizzes)
|
20%
|
|
TOTAL
|
100%
|
Program Graduate Competencies (PGCs are the competencies every graduate will develop specific to his or her major)
Program Graduate Competencies (PGCs are the competencies every graduate will develop specific to his or her major):
- Create and maintain effective and professional documents relevant to Human Services agencies.
- Interact ethically and professionally within the Human Services field.
- Apply information to identify client’s strengths, weaknesses, and resources to create a treatment plan.
- Provide effective client services at an entry level by utilizing professional Human Services principles and practices.
- Establish effective working relationships within the Human Services arena.
- Apply basic management and leadership skills in Human Services environments, including time management, organization, and the ability to follow directions.
- Utilize feedback to assess the effect of oneself on Human Services outcomes and make adjustments accordingly.
Core Curriculum Competencies (CCCs are the competencies every graduate will develop)
- Apply clear and effective communication skills.
- Use critical thinking to solve problems.
- Collaborate to achieve a common goal.
- Demonstrate professional and ethical conduct.
- Use information literacy for effective vocational and/or academic research.
- Apply quantitative reasoning and/or scientific inquiry to solve practical problems.
Students in Need of Accommodations Due to a Disability
We value all individuals and provide an inclusive environment that fosters equity and student success. The College is committed to providing reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities. Students are encouraged to schedule an appointment with the campus Disabilities Support Counselor to request an accommodation needed due to a disability. The College's policy on accommodations for persons with disabilities can be found in the College's Guide to Requesting Academic Accommodations and/or Auxiliary Aids Students may also access the Guide and contact information for Disabilities Support Counselors through the Student Resources web page under Disabilities Support Services, or visit the campus Advising Center.