If you had a client who consistently lied to you regarding his continued substance abuse, how would you handle that situation?
"I like to address situations as they arise and not leave them there to fester and create greater issues later down the road. If I know that a client is not being forthcoming with me, I like to politely address what I feel like I am observing and ask for the client's response. I also like to make it clear that we have neutral ground in my office, but that transparency and honesty are rules that have to be followed if counseling is going to be effective. Although there are times that clients do not want to reveal certain things about their lives or addictions, with time and consistency, the ones who really want help become willing to open up and address their issues so that we can establish a plan of care that will work for them."
"I believe my biggest strengths are in my ability to draw thoughts and feelings out of a patient without them feeling as though I am prying. This skill has helped me to be very successful in bringing many clients to a life absent of substances."
Many times clients who are attending counseling due to addiction deny the use of substances or relapses they may have experienced. There are a number of reasons why counselors feel that clients do this. Some reasons are that clients don't want to be embarrassed and don't want their counselors to be upset because of their non-compliance. Others still, begin to attend counseling but are not quite ready to take the necessary measures to address their addictions so that they can begin full recovery from them. Either way, dishonesty makes creating and implementing a plan of care very difficult. Tell the interviewer how you would handle a situation like this.
"Unfortunately, I have had this happen more than once. There are some clients who simply don't want to be in counseling but have felt compelled to attend, whether judicially or with family who have ultimatums about receiving addiction care. I have found that being direct, yet professionally polite, is always the best way to address this issue. Simply going along with a client's dishonesty only adds to the problem. However, being hostile about their behavior is not helpful, either. I like to use my first few encounters with my clients to establish some 'ground rules', so to speak. I always tell them that I will be honest with them and that I can help them when they are ready to be honest with themselves and with me regarding whatever their addiction issue is."
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Anonymous Answer
I would ask this client to speak with them privately and explain to them that in order for treatment to work effectively I need him/her to not only be honest with me but to be honest with themselves. I may ask them if they're ready to start working on getting clean and sober. If the client is consistently lying to me, I can't force them to be ready to make changes in their lives, but remind him/her our facility is here to help them when they're ready.
Kristine's Feedback
Good answer! Your answer reveals you have strong communication skills that would help you handle this situation. If you have faced this situation before, share it as an example.
If I had a client who consistently lied to me about his or her continued substance abuse, I would speak with them privately and explain that for treatment to work effectively; I would need him/her to not only be honest with me but to be honest with themselves. I would also ask them if they're ready to start working on getting clean and sober. If the client is consistently lying to me, I can't force them to be ready to make changes in their lives, but remind him/her our facility is here to help them when they're ready.
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