Remy, a 37-year-old woman has been married to her current husband for 17 years. She reports her husband has been emotionally abusive towards her on and off throughout the marriage. Since arriving in Canada one ago, she reports the violence has become more frequent and more physical, requiring 2 hospitalizations (broken nose, broken arm, bruising). R. indicated that she lied to the hospital staff about the origin of these injuries. She reports her husband has Landed Immigrant Status and has been working for some time and sponsored her and their three children.

All three children (11, 8, 3) have been exposed to violence in the home but have not experienced violence directly. She reports that in the most recent assault, her husband slapped her and then grabbed a knife, and threatened to hurt her "badly". He later apologized, promising that things would be better. Since this episode, R reports experiencing frequent headaches, increased anxiety and problems eating and sleeping. She also states that her 8-year-old is showing similar behaviours.

All of R's family live overseas, except for one brother who currently lives in Calgary. Her husband's parents and 2 siblings live locally, and they are in contact weekly. R speaks and reads some English and received a degree in nursing in her country of origin. She hopes that she will be able to pursue further studies here in Canada, however, she says that her husband is not keen on this idea, and they argue whenever she raises the issue.

R states that has considered leaving the marriage on a few occasions however, she is concerned about her immigration status and also what will happen to her kids if she goes to a shelter, as she does not want social services involved in their lives. She states that ultimately, she wants to fix her marriage, as divorce is unacceptable in her culture and religion. She recalls some happy moments with her husband before coming to Canada and hopes that things will improve when they both feel more settled here.

1. Based on the scenario, what are the key presenting concerns and barriers for the client? What are the priority needs?