Reference no: EM133317495

Case Study: You are a social worker on an interprofessional team (also known as a multi-disciplinary team) that works with children who are on the autism spectrum and their families. Three-year-old Jenny is referred to your team. She is the light of her father's life- she is lively, energetic, and bright-eyed. In the last year, she has become quiet, preferring to play by herself and she is less interested in the special outings her father loves to share with her. After a series of appointments with the pediatrician, Jenny was referred to a specialist in developmental pediatrics. Many observations and checklists later Jenny was diagnosed with autism. Her parents Catherine and Jason were devastated. Her 2-year old brother Sammy, was oblivious. Over the last month, Catherine began to adjust to the diagnosis. She connected with a supportive group of parents coping with children on the autism spectrum and read all she could about autism. She also spent considerable time with Jenn, playing and coaxing her to interact with her. Jason, however, was notably uninterested in Catherine's activities. He began to refuse to go to Jenny's doctor's appointments. During one argumentive dinner with Catherine, he stated that he did not believe the diagnosis; he thought Jenny was fine, that she was just going through a stage, and he accused Catherine of selling out her own daughter. Jenny's pediatrician referred her to the interprofessional team. Catherine engaged in the process enthusiastically. Jason attended the assessment and seemed sullen, participating very little. The team concurs that the family would benefit from your support work around the diagnosis. Catherine and Jason agree to meet with you, and you speculate this might be your only chance to engage Jason. Based on the preceding scenario please answer the following questions

Question 1. What is your assessment of the family? Identify a theoretical perspective that would be applicable to working with this family.

Question 2. How would you attempt to engage the family, paying close attention to Jason?