Strengths-based Assessment
- Assessment is conceptualized broadly to include one’s skills and abilities, community and environmental resources, cultural knowledge and lore, knowledge gained from struggling with adversity, as well as knowledge gained from educational or occupational endeavors.
- A strengths-based assessment approach recognizes that every individual has capabilities, accomplishments and potential, and considers positive factors in the person’s surrounding environment such as his or her natural support network including family assets, community supports, and social service system network. These characteristics mean that each person has the potential for future accomplishments that will facilitate continuing to attain the life he or she wishes to achieve.
- A strengths-based approach recognizes that every individual, no matter how severe the person’s illness might be, has the capacity to continue to learn and develop, and achieve (or maximize) their potential.
- In addition to gathering information about the individual’s strengths, accomplishments, functional capabilities, and resiliencies, information is sought regarding resources within the individual’s family, his or her support network, and community at large.
- Information from each assessment is shared with the individual and his or her support team, when the person has given consent for information sharing with those individuals.
Culture
- The impact of a person’s cultural background can have profound effects on many areas of a person’s life. Cultural factors, including religion, beliefs about mental illness, its etiology, and its acceptability may influence the assessment process.
- The beliefs and values that a person is taught and grows up with may have considerable influence on the ways behavior is viewed, acceptability of seeking mental health services, and ability of women, children, and members of the non-majority culture to speak for themselves, establish goals, determine skills they wish to develop, etc.
- Language barriers can have a profound effect on ability to communicate the many important facets of a person’s life and background that impact on the assessment and planning process.
- Assessments that account for a person’s cultural background and are focused on the person’s strengths, functional capability, interests, goals, and resources are essential. This is after all, the way that most people approach the process of planning future goals: people use their strengths and successes to develop future aspirations and goals, and build on those strengths and successes to accomplish new goals.
Once all components of the assessment have been completed and reviewed, an integrated summary and vocational plan should be documented. All aspects of the assessment and summary are discussed and shared with the person and others according to the person’s wishes and within confidentiality guidelines.
Guided by the Domain Professional Skills Canadian PSR Competency B1 Demonstrates ethical, legal practices, and professional behaviour, the practitioner will ensure confidentiality of documentation while making every attempt to use the language of the person receiving services.