A paper where I advocate for a client in need of health services

1. Running head: Case Study-Amici 1
Community Advocacy Case Study-Alexandria Amici
Introduction:
Stephanie is in need of an advocate to give her a voice for her human rights. She has a
problem with substance abuse and therefore no one wishes to help her. She wants to be able to
attend nursing school but cannot take any action without any advocacy.
Vignette:
Stephanie is a 22 year old Caucasian female who currently lives in Reading,
Pennsylvania with her mom and stepfather. She graduated from online cyber school a few years
ago and now wishes to pursue a career in nursing by enrolling in the program at Reading Area
Community College. She had a job being a home care taker for an elderly woman and just
recently quit her job to get all necessary paperwork and items together to being the enrollment
process in the nursing program. In order to enroll in this nursing program, she will need
background checks and medical information. She will also need to pass a drug test upon
enrollment. She will need to apply for loans and pay the out of pocket tuition bills each semester.
When Stephanie was 16, she became very ill and started to miss a lot of school days
when she was attending Exeter High School. She missed so many days that she had to drop out
of school that year. She was a sophomore at the time. She went to the doctor to figure out what
was wrong and she was diagnosed with celiac disease. This means that she cannot eat any gluten
in her diet or she will become very ill. The gluten affects the small intestine and causes damage
to it. She was missing school from constant stomach pain and vomiting. (Celiac Disease-
Symptoms 2015).Thankfully upon her diagnosis, she was able to identify any gluten items in her
diet. After stopping consumption of gluten, her symptoms began to lighten up. However she
could not enroll back in Exeter High School. This is when she started Cyber School. Attending
online school discouraged her so she did not take it very seriously so her literacy level is not as
high as it could have been because she looked up the answers to her tests online as she was
taking them.
After graduating and beginning her job as a home care taker, she felt very isolated and
alone because she lost many of her high school friends after being diagnosed with celiac and
isolating herself. From working she had a lot of money left in her savings and quit her job when
she wanted to pursue her nursing career. However, the loneliness caused depression and lead to
substance abuse. She used all of her savings on her drug habit and was kicked out of her house
because she was unable to stop when her mom found out. She was staying at a friend’s but
because of her inability to pay rent she is now homeless. She is no longer on her mom’s
insurance and cannot find a treatment program to enroll in. She wants to become clean to make
amends with her family and start her nursing program.
She went to her former family care physician to look for drug treatment programs and
looking to obtain cheap insurance. Her doctor was very rude and distant upon giving her options.
He had a bias against her as his daughter had been dating a drug addict. He was reluctant in
helping her and trying to find her insurance and treatment programs. He then proceeded to tell
her there was nothing he could do for her and showed her the way out. Stephanie felt very lost
with no options. She called her mom to ask for help in the situation so she could see a doctor to

2. Case Study-Amici 2
keep up with her chronic celiac disease, gain insurance and seek treatment. Her mom said
Stephanie should be able to stop on her own and hung up. Stephanie cannot enroll in nursing
school without passing a drug test and getting medical treatment, she needs finances to gain
loans for school and to get in a treatment program. She lastly needs emotional support from
someone in order to accomplish any of her goals.
Advocacy Issues:
 Environment: Stephanie is homeless with no insurance or primary physician.
 Emotional: Stephanie has no moral support from her parents or doctors. She has
parents who believe she can just stop when she wants to.
 Education: Stephanie has low health literacy and does not understand medical
documents or enrollment papers for nursing school. She cannot obtain a higher
education without getting into nursing school.
 Health: Stephanie needs to get clean or she will end up dying. She also needs to
pass a drug test for nursing school.
 Legal: She needs an advocate to support her and give her a voice. Stephanie also
needs finances to afford her insurance, treatment and loans.
Scenario:
Stephanie is able to locate an advocate, Teresa, to help her with her various difficult
situations. Teresa is also a dual diagnosis counselor for those with mental illness and addiction
issues. Teresa starts out by letting Stephanie know she is not alone and that it is possible to reach
recovery and follow her goals. Teresa makes a call to Stephanie’s mom to set up a meeting with
her. She will use this meeting to help get Stephanie’s point and concerns across without being
interrupted by her mother or being told that she can stop without help.
Stephanie and Teresa get to Stephanie’s mom’s house. They all sit down in the living
room and first address the issues between Stephanie and her mom. Teresa begins to advocate to
Stephanie’s mom by telling her as a professional that individuals with addiction cannot just
simply stop. Teresa explains the problems that arise with addiction and the inability to stop.
“The withdrawal symptoms are excruciating and each time an addict starts to stop. Symptoms
include hot and cold flashes, body tremors, constipation, fever, aches and pain in the bones, and
severe discomfort. Heroin addicts cannot bear the pain, think they will just use a little to get by
and before long are back to square one” (Lockie).Teresa will assure the mom that an inpatient
treatment program is Stephanie’s best shot for recovery and becoming well again. However, she
cannot enroll in a treatment program without insurance. Stephanie’s mom agrees to put her back
on the insurance plan if it will get her the help she needs. Stephanie will not be homeless if she is
staying in the inpatient treatment program for a month. She will come out in recovery and pass a
drug test for her mom to be able to live at her house again.
Teresa will find a doctor, Dr. Monsoon, which specializes in addiction treatment to help
Stephanie find a program that suits her needs best. This doctor will be her new primary care

3. Case Study-Amici 3
physician so Stephanie can follow up with him after she is out of her program to make sure she
follows the path of recovery. When Stephanie is out of her treatment program, Teresa will being
assisting her in understanding all the medical and application forms that come with enrolling in
the nursing program she wants to be in.
Stephanie completes her treatment program successfully and is back at home with her
mom and stepfather. Stephanie passes the drug test she needs to apply to the nursing program at
Reading Area Community College. The next step is Teresa helping Stephanie understand all the
forms she needs to obtain and complete. Teresa helps Stephanie understand these forms using the
Brown Bag Assessment. The Brown Bag assessment uses common objects to help an individual
comprehend the text they are looking at and reading. The person giving the assessment will put
items in the bag that connect to the text the individual is trying to understand. The individual
being assessed will then make connections between the objects and the documents to gain a
better understanding of what is being read to them(Ousley-Exum 2016). Teresa puts items in the
bag such as checkmarks, different backgrounds of pictures, a sample of a report card, and
anything else Teresa deems helpful for Stephanie. Stephanie will then use these items to gain a
better understanding of what she needs to do with these various documents.
The last thing Teresa does is help Stephanie obtain loans and grants needed to afford
nursing school. Stephanie would not have been able to achieve her goal of attending nursing
school and having a nursing career if it was not for Teresa helping Stephanie get clean and
giving her the support and voice she needed to follow through with her plan to complete the
goals.
Conclusion:

4. Case Study-Amici 4
References
Celiac Disease-Symptoms. WebMD. (2015). Retrieved Feb 28 2017 from
http://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/celiac-disease/celiac-disease--symptoms
Lockie, M. HEROIN ADDICTION AND WHY ADDICTS CAN’T STOP USING. NEW LIFE
HOUSE RECOVERY COMMUNITY. Retrieved Feb 28 2017 from
https://newlifehouse.com/heroin-addiction-why-addicts-cant-stop-using/
Ousley-Exum, D. Brown Bag Exams: A Creative Way to Assess Learning. AdLIT.org. (2016)
Retrieved Feb 28 2017 from http://www.adlit.org/unlocking_the_past/brown_bag_exams/