Addressing Life’s Challenges, Layer by Layer

By Marcy Morgenbesser, LICSW, CJFS Clinical Director.

Older adults are often referred to CJFS because of one acute problem – say, they’re grieving the death of a spouse, they have serious financial problems or their loved ones have noticed they’re growing forgetful.

But while working with the client to deal with that problem, our clinical social workers sometimes discover other pressing issues – concerns that are linked to the initial problem but are worrying on their own.

For example, while a member of our clinical team was helping a client deal with his emerging memory issues, the client received a serious medical diagnosis. While assisting him and his wife in managing his numerous medical appointments, our staff member discovered that the couple had recently forgotten to pay their health insurance bill. While straightening that out, she discovered their finances, in general, were a tangled mess.

When pressing issues have been left unaddressed for months or years, the first job of a case manager is to assess, prioritize, and address the numerous issues, layer by layer. And each time a new issue is uncovered, priorities need to be reassessed and adjusted.

A situation like the one described above can be overwhelming and incredibly stressful for friends or family to manage on their own. Social workers have experience breaking complex problems down into their distinct parts and prioritizing them – all in a respectful partnership with our clients.

To learn more about Case Management from CJFS, contact Marcy Morgenbesser, marcy@cjfsbham.org or 205.879.3438.