Scenario

You have been hired as a Diversity and Inclusion (DI) Outreach Specialist for a human services agency within your community. The agency was established to assist diverse and vulnerable individuals in need of resources based in your local area. Your job focuses on ensuring that individuals in the community are aware of the services available to them and helping them to find resources applicable to their unique situation. Your supervisor has asked you to create a comprehensive and culturally appropriate "plan of care" based upon the following scenario.

Scenario of "Mock" Client: Amal is a 23-year-old Iranian American male who lives in low-income housing with his 57-year-old, Iranian-born mother, Doretha. Doretha is severely disabled. Amal has visited the agency three times to request referrals for services in the area. The agency supervisor asked that you handle his case because of your expertise and experience in providing culturally appropriate referrals/resources for clients.

Amal reports that he has struggled with social anxiety and depression for most of his life. He does not, however, have a formal diagnosis from a licensed professional. Amal did not finish high school but did take the GED test and passed. Amal and his mother do not currently have full-time jobs and they do not qualify for medical insurance. Amal reports that they have applied for state benefits but have not attended the necessary appointments to fill out the paperwork to implement those benefits.

Doretha has never visited the agency, but Amal requested information on ways to help his mother get out of the house. Amal revealed his mother is not comfortable leaving the house because of language barriers and her fears of being found by his violent father. Amal has no contact with his father or his father's family due to Domestic Violence (DV) order.

Amal disclosed that he occasionally uses marijuana and often drinks too much. Amal believes that he cannot be successful due to his lack of education, poor social skills, and lack of job experience. Amal and his mother are Muslims, but do not participate in daily prayer or family customs. During one of his previous visits to the agency, Amal mentioned that he also is questioning his sexual orientation. He is not attracted to females, which has caused problems in his relationship with his mother due to their Muslim customs and religious practices.

Amal believes turning away from his cultural traditions and religious beliefs is part of the reason why he has mental health issues, sexual orientation uncertainty, and continued problematic use of alcohol and other substances. Amal came to the agency to find information about higher education, job placement referrals, mental health, substance abuse, and/or other relevant local services.

In completing a plan of care for clients, including Amal, it is important to unearth your "unconscious bias" or potential areas of conflict that may surface when working and interacting with individuals of different cultural beliefs, backgrounds, and social/personal values. It is essential to become aware of our biases and understand the impact of unconscious bias before working with diverse/vulnerable clients/patients.

The first step in addressing unconscious bias is to examine your personal beliefs, values, attitudes, and perceptions. To begin, review the information provided at the weblinks below:

Unconscious Bias

The impact of unconscious bias in healthcare: How to recognize and mitigate it

Use the information found on the websites linked above to explore and explain your answers to the following questions in a Word Document. All answers should be completely in your own words. Your response should be at least 250 words in length.

1. Define the term "bias" and describe the two types of bias.
2. Explain how understanding bias will help you make appropriate referrals and find suitable resources for your client (in this case, Amal).
3. Looking back at the Identifying Client Characteristics Chart you completed in Week 2, identify at least two (2) significant differences that exist between you and Amal. These differences might include religious beliefs, sexual orientation, gender identification, socioeconomic status (SES), etc. Detail how these differences might relate to bias and/or impact the care that Amal receives.
4. Summarize some strategies that you (as an individual working within the human and social services field) can utilize to minimize the impact of bias.