BUS4003

Meeting the Needs of Service Users

Case Study

Date for Submission: Please refer to the timetable on ilearn

(The submission portal on ilearn will close at 14:00 UK time

on the date of submission)

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Assignment Brief

As part of the formal assessment for the programme you are required to submit a
Meeting the Needs of Service Users assignment. Please refer to your Student
Handbook for full details of the programme assessment scheme and general
information on preparing and submitting assignments.

Learning Outcomes:

After completing the module, you should be able to:

1.Assess care needs and formulate desirable and achievable goals and provide a
rationale for the structures and systems which support this practice.

2.Explore own skills in assessment of needs, relating these to relevant theory.

3.Reflect on individual role in the implementation of care to meet the needs of service
users.

4.Demonstrate the ability to communicate good practice to others.

Professional Skills

Perform effectively within the professional environment. Work within a team,

demonstrating interpersonal skills such as effective listening, negotiating, persuading
and presentation. Be flexible and adaptable to changes within the professional
environment.

Your assignment should include: a title page containing your student number, the
module name, the submission deadline and a word count; the appendices if relevant;
and a reference list in Arden University (AU) Harvard format. You should address all
the elements of the assignment task listed below. Please note that tutors will use the
assessment criteria set out below in assessing your work.
Maximum word count: 3,000 words

Please note that exceeding the word count by over 10% will result in a reduction in grade
by the same percentage that the word count is exceeded.

You must not include your name in your submission because Arden University
operates anonymous marking, which means that markers should not be aware of
the identity of the student. However, please do not forget to include your STU
number.

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Assignment Task

Schizophrenia is a severe long-term mental health condition. It causes a range of different

psychological symptoms. Doctors often describe schizophrenia as a type of psychosis.
This means the person may not always be able to distinguish their own thoughts and
ideas from reality.

Symptoms of schizophrenia include:

hallucinations – hearing or seeing things that do not exist
delusions – unusual beliefs not based on reality
muddled thoughts based on hallucinations or delusions
changes in behaviour
Some people think schizophrenia causes a "split personality" or violent behaviour. This is
not true.
The cause of any violent behaviour is usually drug or alcohol misuse.
When to seek medical advice
If you're experiencing symptoms of schizophrenia, see a GP as soon as possible. The
earlier schizophrenia is treated, the better.
There's no single test for schizophrenia. It's usually diagnosed after an assessment by a
mental health care professional, such as a psychiatrist.
Causes of schizophrenia
The exact cause of schizophrenia is unknown. But most experts believe the condition is
caused by a combination of genetic and environmental factors.
It's thought that some people are more vulnerable to developing schizophrenia, and
certain situations can trigger the condition.
Treating schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is usually treated with a combination of medication and therapy tailored to
each individual.
In most cases, this will be antipsychotic medicines and cognitive behavioural therapy
(CBT).
People with schizophrenia usually receive help from a community mental health team,
which offers day-to-day support and treatment.
Many people recover from schizophrenia, although they may have periods when
symptoms return (relapses).

NHS. 2016. Overview schizophrenia [online]. UK: NHS. Available from:

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/schizophrenia/ [Accessed 23 September 2019].

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Case Study:

Marcia Jones 35, lives with her partner Ted, 40 and their three children, Florence,
Mark and Anthony in a two-bedroom flat in Peckham. She has a history of mental ill
health, namely, schizophrenia and does not work outside of the home. When Marcia
takes her medication regularly she is able to maintain her household chores and
look after the two younger children at home and make sure that Florence gets to
school on time and ready to learn.
Ted Jones works as a handy person though his work is precarious and the family
have very little money. This also means that Ted works long hours and cannot
always be at home to support Marcia if she is unwell.
When Marcia is taking her medication, she has very little energy and therefore she
does not like to take it. When Marcia stops taking her medication she struggles to
keep the children in clean clothes, or to maintain the household i.e., making sure
there are regular meals and sometimes finds it very hard to make sure they all have
enough to eat.
Florence is of school age at eight but her two brothers are three and two years old.
Florence has recently been attending school hungry and wearing dirty clothes on a
regular basis. She has been unable to concentrate in class and her teachers are
concerned.
As an adult mental health social worker, you are responsible for supporting Marcia
and her care needs and co-ordinating desirable and achievable goals in relation to
them.

Question 1

Using this case study, assess Marcia Jones’s care needs, exploring your own skills
and devising a care plan which will support her and help her to achieve her goals.
Make sure that you include theories to support the models and frameworks you are
using and that you justify your use of them. In your writing ensure you clearly
communicate areas of good practice which you, as the social worker and the rest of
the multi-disciplinary team should deliver.

(2,500 words)
(80 marks)
(LOs: 1, 2 and 4 Professional skills)

Question 2

Using a model to reflect on your practice, evaluate your role in devising and
implementing care to meet Marcia Jones’s needs. What have you learnt about
devising and delivering care which supports service users?

(500 words)
(20 marks)
(LOs: 3)

End of questions

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Formative Feedback

You have the opportunity to submit a draft of your assignment to receive formative
feedback.

The feedback is designed to help you develop areas of your work and it helps you
develop your skills as an independent learner.

If you are a distance learning student, you should submit your work, by email, to your
tutor, no later than 2 weeks before the actual submission deadline. If you are a blended
learning student, your tutor will give you a deadline for formative feedback and further
details.

Formative feedback will not be given to work submitted after the above date or the date
specified by your tutor - if a blended learning student

Guidelines

You MUST underpin your analysis and evaluation of the key issues with appropriate
and wide ranging academic research and ensure this is referenced using the AU
Harvard Arden University Harvard referencing style.

The My Study Skills Area on iLearn contains useful resources relating to referencing.

Additional notes:

Students are required to indicate the exact word count on the title page of the
assessment.

The word count excludes the title page, tables, figures, diagrams, footnotes,
reference list and appendices. Where assessment questions have been reprinted
from the assessment brief these will also be excluded from the word count. ALL
other printed words ARE included in the word count See ‘Word Count Policy’ on
the homepage of this module for more information.

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Submission Guidance

Assignments submitted late will not be accepted and will be marked as a 0%

fail.

Your assessment should be submitted as a single Word (MS Word) or PDF file. For
more information please see the “Guide to Submitting an Assignment” document
available on the module page on iLearn.

You must ensure that the submitted assignment is all your own work and that all
sources used are correctly attributed. Penalties apply to assignments which show
evidence of academic unfair practice. (See the Student Handbook which is on the
homepage of your module and also in the Induction Area).

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 Assessment Criteria (Learning objectives covered - all)

Level 4 is the first stage on the student journey into undergraduate study. At Level 4 students will be developing their knowledge and understanding of the discipline and will be expected to
demonstrate some of those skills and competences. Student are expected to express their ideas clearly and to structure and develop academic arguments in their work. Students will begin to apply
the theory which underpins the subject and will start to explore how this relates to other areas of their learning and any ethical considerations as appropriate. Students will begin to develop self-
awareness of their own academic and professional development.

Mark Generic Assessment Criteria

Grade
Bands

First 80%+ Outstanding performance which demonstrates the ability to analyse the subject area and to confidently apply theory whilst showing awareness of any relevant ethical
(1) considerations.
The work shows an excellent level of competence and confidence in managing appropriate sources and materials, initiative and excellent academic writing skills and
professional skills (where appropriate). The work shows originality of thought.

70- Excellent performance which demonstrates the ability to analyse the subject and apply theory whilst showing some awareness of any relevant ethical considerations.
79% The work shows a high level of competence in managing sources and materials, initiative and very good academic writing skills and professional skills (where appropriate).
The work shows originality of thought.

Upper 60- Very good performance which demonstrates the ability to analyse the subject and apply some theory.
second 69% The work shows a good level of competence in managing sources and materials and some initiative. Academic writing skills are good and expression remains accurate
(2:1) overall. Good professional skills (where appropriate). The work shows some original thought.

Lower 50- A satisfactory to good performance which begins to analyse the subject and apply some underpinning theory.
second 59% The work shows a sound level of competence in managing basic sources and materials. Academic writing skills are satisfactory and expression remains accurate overall
(2:2) although the piece may lack structure. Satisfactory professional skills (where appropriate). The work lacks some original thought.

Third 40- Basic level of performance in which there are some omissions in understanding the subject, its underpinning theory and ethical considerations.
(3) 49% The work shows a basic use of sources and materials. Academic writing skills are limited and there are some errors in expression and the work may lack structure overall.
There are some difficulties in developing professional skills (where appropriate). The work lacks original thought and is largely imitative.

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Marginal 30- Limited performance in which there are omissions in understanding the subject, its underpinning theory and ethical considerations. The work shows a limited use of sources
fail 39% and materials. Academic writing skills are weak and there are errors in expression and the work may lack structure overall. There are difficulties in developing professional
skills (where appropriate). The work lacks original thought and is largely imitative.

29% A poor performance in which there are substantial gaps in knowledge and understanding, underpinning theory and ethical considerations.
and The work shows little evidence in the use of appropriate sources and materials. Academic writing skills are very weak and there are numerous errors in expression. The work
below lacks structure overall. Professional skills (where appropriate) are not developed. The work is imitative.

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