Is there a type of patient or specific diagnosis that you find it more difficult to treat?
"I believe any counselor will tell you, no matter what the diagnosis, if a client is not really ready to face his addiction and become active in a treatment plan, providing care is difficult. Clients make a choice daily whether or not to participate in their addiction or to be proactive in their recovery."
"I have come across some difficult patients in my career as a counselor. I would say the most challenging patients are those who do not follow their treatment plan yet tell me that they are. It's hard to work around dishonesty so I gently remind these patients that the only person they are hurting is themselves."
Behavioral issues and dual diagnosis, like a bipolar alcoholic, can make treatment extremely difficult. What can make treatment even more difficult are those who don't cooperate or follow through with the plan of care. Tell the interviewer about a particular situation or patient. Be sure to respect patient confidentiality when sharing any examples.
"When a patient doesn't take responsibility to start making changes that are constructive in their life, I feel the difficulty. I do my best to empower them because ultimately they are the ones who can change their own lives. If they choose not to do the work, treatment is a whole lot harder."
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Anonymous Answer
I've worked with clients whose focus is on helping other people in treatment which is a noble gesture, however in the meantime they aren't focusing on themselves enough to gain insight into their addiction which makes treatment very difficult if not impossible.
Kristine's Feedback
Great start. To enhance your answer, talk about what you do in these challenging situations. I added the start of a final sentence for you to complete.
I've worked with clients whose focus is on helping other people in treatment. It's a noble gesture; however, in the meantime, they often don't focus on themselves enough to gain insight into their addiction, which makes treatment very difficult, if not impossible. In these situations, I do my best to...
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