Maggies ePortfolio

Maggie ONeal
April 29, 2015
Wilmington University, AHS8100

Getting Ready
In preparing for my internship experience, I

feel both excited and apprehensive at the

same time. I feel excited because I know that
I have a solid foundation of human service
knowledge in which to build upon with true
experience. I feel apprehensive because I
dont know what to expect as of yet.
I am eager to get started and show my
enthusiasm for the children that the Division
of Family Services serves. I know that I will be
an asset to the Weekend/Holiday Unit and
their supervisor.

Agency Context
The Division of Family Services is the State of

Delawares child protection agency. All

reports of child abuse and neglect come
through this agency.
The Weekend/Holiday Unit takes all hotline
calls from 11pm Friday night through 11pm
Sunday night and determines if the reports
should be investigated and at what level.
The Unit observes many sociocultural issues,
including poverty, domestic violence, sexual
abuse, incest, etc.

Taking Care of Myself

Causes of Stress:

reading, hearing about,

and seeing child abuse;
court cases; redactions
Expecting myself to be
perfect all of the time
causes additional stress
Ways to Relieve Stress:
take things one at a
time; dont
procrastinate; breathe

Workplace Safety
Secure door; 3 separate

doors before employee

area; keycard access
only
Video screen to view
guests who ring doorbell
Code word to announce
if there is a threat in the
building
Alternate escape route if
there is an active shooter

What Do I Need In A Supervisor?

Supportive
Leader
Values my opinion
Good listener
Provides positive

feedback
Wants to see me
succeed
Team player
Knowledgeable

Integrative Processing
Model

Important to be a team player and to support your

employees and back up their decisions. If ever there
are decisions you may not agree with, it is important to
ask questions to try to understand their reasoning and
how they came to that conclusion.
Often a very stressful office, as we are dealing with the
safety of children at all times. Sometimes, we dont
agree with the outcome of an intake, and we are given
leeway to override the decision so that it may be
investigated, but other times, we have to go along with
what the system decides.
The supervisor is very supportive of the unit and is
available for support 24/7. He wants to be notified and
included on difficult decisions, not only to know what is
going on in his unit, but to offer the guidance and
support that his employees need and deserve.
As a supervisor, I will strive to have the same
determination and drive as him. I want to be able to
offer support to my employees so they know that
regardless of the difficulties we face everyday, they will
always have someone in their corner.

Communication
Active Listening
Client Interviewing
Exploration & Action

Skills
Probing
Clarification
Interpreting
Confronting
Summarizing
Informing
Suggesting
Referring

Communication
With Families
With Individuals
Family determines who
Introductions
they consider family
Ensure understanding
Acknowledge each
Summarize key points
member
Clarify future directions
Observe and respect
Write down
the familys hierarchy
commitments either
Circular questioning
party has made
eliciting differing
Exploration and Action
perspectives
Skills
Build on family
strengths

Communication
With Groups
Acknowledge group
dynamics
Composition membership
Goals individual and
group
Roles initiator,
compromiser, etc.
Norms rules and
expectations
Cohesion group members
connected through
social/emotional bonds

Leadership 2-

dimensional, group
leader and group
members lead
together
Group Development
5 stages
Forming
Storming
Norming
Performing
Adjourning

Communication
With Communities
Community
Education
Community
Organization
Assess most
relevant points of
access
Political
Engagement

Writing and Reporting

Documentation is

critical to proper
service delivery
Due dates must be met
or will adversely affect
workers performance
evaluations
Templates are
encouraged to properly
record necessary
information

Ethical Decision Making

Decisions follow a

decision tree
Also based on
personal opinion
when it comes to
screening out
Times when you may
not agree with
Supervisors decision

Ethical Decision Making

Diversity
Evenly diversified

between African American

and Caucasian clients.
Small percentage of
Hispanic clients.
Recognize different
cultures/values.
Access to resources for
other cultures.
Caucasian, female
employees far outnumber
all others.

Ending My Internship
Last day was

Saturday, April 18,

2015
Completed 120.5
hours
Assessed safety and
risk of harm to
children in different
situations
Observed and
participated in
interviews of adults

Ending My Internship
Learned professional

resources available for

families and children
Made referrals to outside
resources and
community partners
Last day was the hardest
and most traumatic
Made lasting
relationships with coworkers

Career Development
Prepared for position

with direct
responsibility of cases
Gained invaluable
experience in
determining what
kinds of calls qualify as
what priority hotline
More confident in my
skills in interviewing
children and adults

Career Development
Competently able to

elicit complete and

accurate information
from different sources
Knowledgeable in
hotline entry
Accurately assigns
hotline dispositions
and priorities

Reference
Myers Kiser, P. (2012). The Human Services

Internship. Getting the Most from Your

Experience, 3rd Edition. Belmont, CA:
Brooks/Cole, Cengage Learning.