Case example 8

Mingyu worked as a gymnastics coach at the local YMCA while attending college. There he worked with Don, a talented 12-year-old who was on the YMCA's gymnastics team. While performing his internship as a Juvenile Court counselor, Mingyu was shocked to see Don in juvenile court due to charges of vandalism and theft. Although the situation made Mingyu somewhat uncomfortable, he did not feel there was any real conflict because Don was assigned to a different court counselor. Within a few days, a number of issues began to complicate the picture. For example, in staffing later that week, information was shared about Don's family that Mingyu felt sure Don's family would not want him to know. Also, certain information was shared about the family that Mingyu knew for a fact was false. He suspected that either Don, his parents, or both had lied to his court counselor. As the staffing came to a close, Mingyu's heart sank further when the decision was made to refer Don to a group that Mingyu and his supervisor were co-leading. Recognizing the many dual role issues involved, Mingyu scheduled a meeting with his supervisor immediately to discuss the situation.

EXERCISE 3.13 Analysis

• What do you see as Mingyu's options in resolving this problem? If you were in his position, how would you resolve the problem?
• How should Mingyu handle the conflict between what he knows about Don's family and the information reported by the court counselor?
• What role, if any, should he have in any discussions about Don that might occur in the agency