 Identify Need with a service plan of action; do not provide a summary  We are

 Identify Need with a service plan of action; do not provide a summary
 We are looking at your Writing skills; please write in complete sentences
 provide no more than 1 page, NO SOURCES NEEDED
 write in 3rd person; you are (Care Manager) / SOCIAL WORK
CASE STUDY
Bobby is a 15-year-old boy who has recently moved to a small town in rural Georgia from a big city in Florida. His parents moved in the hopes of getting better care for Bobby and controlling his unsafe, illegal behavior. Ever since he was little, Bobby has been fascinated with cars. Unfortunately, his relationship with them is not positive. Bobby has stolen his dad’s much prized car several times as well as the cars of several neighbors. The first time he was arrested for car theft, he was found to have both beer and marijuana on his person. There were also a couple of kids from his old neighborhood riding around with him. A court-ordered drug and alcohol assessment has indicated that it’s very unlikely that Bobby is addicted to either of the substances found on him. It appears far more likely that he is a lonely kid, using the beer, marijuana, and the vehicles he steals as a way to socialize with other kids.
Bobby has been in detention several times, as well as several residential treatment centers. None of
the available resources have produced durable change in Bobby’s behavior. He was kicked out of all the programs because he gets aggressive with staff. He has also experienced three hospitalizations, resulting in seven diagnoses, which were all contradictory. Bobby has even earned the dubious distinction of being kicked out of a locked psychiatric unit because he was too dangerous. Each time he gets kicked out of a program, the reasons are clear: the mental health professionals say he’s too big and too dangerous; the staff at the detention center and at the programs he was referred to say that this is mental illness and they’re not designed to handle it. Each time he’s booted out of a program, he’s sent home with his confused parents, Charlene and Ray. They are wondering how they can manage him when the experts can’t contain him. At this point, he is taking nine medications, prescribed by his primary care doctor and two psychiatrists, across the course of the efforts to treat him effectively. Even though it’s a sure bet for a power struggle, Charlene gives him his medicine every day in the hopes of bettering his condition. Bobby has not attended school this year at all. When he was taken to register, classes were in the midst of changing. He completely panicked, almost lost control of himself, and has adamantly refused to attend school since. The biggest difficulty Bobby experiences is that he hears threatening voices and feels that his safety is in jeopardy. He often tries to get access to sharp objects (razors, forks, knives, etc.) to ward off the voices. Although he has never exhibited the unprovoked aggression seen when he’s in out of home
care at home, he occasionally takes a stab at his younger brother and sister (Chuckie, age seven; and
Darla, age eight), who are quite confused and often scared of their brother. There have been three
child abuse investigations, related to Ray’s attempts to restrain Bobby to protect the little ones.
Bobby fights back as hard as he can when his dad tries to stop him. The Department of Family and
Children Services are currently involved due to Bobby’s truancy issues and refusal to go to school. The
Case Manager is reportedly looking into options for services for the family. Ray and Charlene report
they have not heard from their Case Manager in over a month though.
Ray is on disability, diagnosed with PTSD. He is a veteran of the Vietnam War and a graduate of what
he refers to as the secret ninja school of the U.S. Army. Currently, he is not sleeping much because he
guards his car from an upstairs window every night, afraid that Bobby will steal it again. Ray clearly
loves Charlene and his children a great deal. This motivated him to quit drinking (for the most part)
two years ago, and he reports that he has rarely has anger outbursts towards any member of the
family since then. One concern he has is that his disability status will be discontinued at an upcoming
hearing. He’s pretty stressed out about it, which also interferes with his sleep. He has tried therapy,
but no longer goes because he felt that the therapist had no comprehension of what he had been
through in the service.
Charlene is the heart of the family. She keeps sharp objects locked in the trunk of her car to keep the
family safe. She works afternoon shifts at a local college and takes Bobby to work with her daily
because his dad is leery of supervising him alone. She fondly remembers the last time she and her
husband went out for an evening together, which was over two years ago. Bobby’s Aunt Jessie and
her boyfriend, Al, supervised him that evening, but they are no longer willing to do so. Al had to stop
Bobby from stabbing at his daughter, and they’re afraid that he will be investigated and found guilty
of child abuse, like Ray was. Al doesn’t want to threaten the already shaky custody deal he has with
his ex-wife.
Bobby is interested in boxing and MTV. He loves his mom and frequently hugs her around the neck as
tight as he can. When he applies too much pressure, she gently unwinds his fingers and removes his
hands. At work, she lets him carry her large key ring, which appears to make Bobby feel safer about
the voices he hears. He also loves his Aunt Jessie, Charlene’s sister. He’d like to be closer to his dad
and likes many of the same activities as Ray. They both follow racing, especially NASCAR and the Indy
500. Like Ray, Bobby can work hard, at least when he wants to. When he can, Bobby dives into his favorite TV shows and movies. His current favorite movies are The Phantom Menace and the rest
of the Star Wars series, and his all-time favorites are the Star Trek movies.