Assignment:
You are the executive director of a small publicly funded behavioral health agency that serves indigent clients. After 10 years of being able to serve all clients seeking help, your agency has just received a 20% budget cut and must prioritize which services to discontinue and which clients to turn away. The community has many suggestions: stop serving undocumented immigrants and their children; stop serving substance abuse clients, limit all clients to six sessions, discontinue providing expensive services like psychiatry, lay off professional counselors and hire non-licensed paraprofessionals, stop providing counseling and instead simply offer peer self-help groups and parenting classes, serve only the most seriously ill (or the least seriously ill), and serve only children.
- How would you approach the difficult task of cutting services by 20% in a manner that reflects your ethical obligations as a community counselor? Would your plan differ if you were in a private sector? If yes, how?
- What criteria would you consider? What theoretical or standard of care practice will you follow to make a final decision about what to cut from your program?
Your answer must be typed, double-spaced, Times New Roman font (size 12), one-inch margins on all sides, APA format and also include references.