Social Work Treatment Planning: Crafting Useful

Goals and Objectives

DSH-Salinas Valley-Department of Social Work

October 16, 2015M. Knapp, MSW, LCSW

Today’s Goals:

1. To increase knowledge regarding the importance of goals and objectives in treatment planning

2. To identify the definitions of the words “Goal” and “Objective”3. To decrease discomfort regarding “measurement”

4. To increase individual ability to craft measureable goal statements with matching objectives

5. To initiate a discussion regarding “well crafted” goals and objectives for Clinical Social Work

Today’s Objectives:

1.) Participants will verbalize one reason why social workers use goals and objectives in treatment planning.

2.) Group members will identify the correct definitions of “Goal” and “Objective” as it relates to SW treatment planning.

3.) Participants will report at least one reason why the helping professions might struggle with making goals and objectives specific and measureable.

4.) Each participant will craft a measurable goal and objective of their own.

5.) Group members will identify what a “well crafted” goal and objective should include.

Who creates treatment goals?

Click icon to add picture

Is It:The team? The patient/consumer?The Social Worker? All the above?

…and team members receive and synthesize the information, using questioning and through maintaining a Feedback Culture: feedback and thought on goal progress, modification and attainment is a constant cycle.

Ideally- the patient/consumer identifies the goal(s)….

ASK!

Which do you like better:“So you can discharge in a timely fashion, the team needs to meet the goals set by your sending facility. Therefore, here’s what we are thinking you will work

on…”OR

“Please help us to understand what you want to get out of this program. Even beyond that, what do you want for

yourself in the future?”Which one of the above is your “default”?

How?

Get it from:

1. 1:1s2. Group interactions

3. Your peers4. Floor Staff

5. Supervisors6. Outside entities

7. Scholarly literature

Use Feedback Continually

Are These Goals?

“The inmate will tell the receiving team what he wants to work on.”“The I/P will take his meds all the time.”“He will shower more.”

Sort of… But-

Sometimes we get the “lazy “version of a requested outcome- and we have to re-craft into an understandable and measureable statement.

Goal:  the end toward which effort is directed. (n.d. Retrieved August 22, 2015 from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/goal)

Remember:

Consider This Comparison of

Goal Statements

“Unfocused: The patient…” “…will work on…” “…will continue to…” “…will know when

he… ” “…will come to

groups more…” “…will act out less…” “…will stop…”

“Focused: The patient…” “…will initiate…” “…will maintain…” “…will identify…”

“…will increase…” “…will decrease…” “…will eliminate…”

Increasing a desired behavior

Decreasing a negative or harmful behavior Maintaining a useful or positive behavior

Eliminating a very high risk behavior Initiating a positive (or even different)

behavior (and possibly Identifying a behavior- but use

with caution)

Well –Crafted Goal Statements ask for CHANGE towards:

IDEALLY: the team works with the patient to

identify if a given behavior is : 1.) Safe for the patient and others around him

2.) Meeting a patient-identified need 3.) “Functional” (i.e. not organic in nature but

rather psychological) 4.) One that the patient is motivated to

change

Who decides (and how)if a behavior is “positive”,

“harmful”, ‘negative”, etc.?

Definition of being Objective:  limited to choices of fixed alternatives and reducing subjective

factors to a minimum (n.d. Retrieved August 22, 2015 from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/objective)

Once the goal has been identified- implement

Objectives

Objectives: “The steps towards working on a goal, guided by fixed, objective alternatives.”

For maximum impact, consider this revision:

…we are directing effort

towards a desired end (behavior change).

When Clinicians Write and Implement Goals and

Objectives…

Pick Here

“Pick A Problem”