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Follow the links below to find material targeted to the unit's elements, performance criteria, required skills and knowledge

Elements and Performance Criteria

1. Elements define the essential outcomes.
2. Identify social and emotional needs of clients
   • Use effective and culturally appropriate and safe communication skills to gain an understanding of the client’s concerns
   • Maintain client confidentiality at all times according to organisation procedures
   • Record findings according to organisation procedures
3. Provide information about available social and emotional support services
   • Provide accurate information about counselling options, which are targeted to identified individual and community needs
   • Adapt delivery of information as required to facilitate understanding and address need
   • Obtain further information as required to address identified needs
   • Support clients in taking a self-care approach to health, in line with individual needs and organisation and community requirements
4. Assist clients to receive support for social and emotional wellbeing
   • Consult other health professionals to clarify required care and support services, including referral to other service providers or allied health professionals
   • Provide immediate support to clients in crisis, in consultation with the health team and supervisor and in line with organisation procedures
   • Provide clients with details of social and/or emotional support service providers in line with identified needs
   • Offer immediate help to bereaved family members
5. Follow up clients after accessing social and emotional supports
   • Consult individual and/or community about effectiveness of support services and associated support provided
   • Investigate and provide additional referrals as required
6. Apply self-care strategies
   • Acknowledge limits of own personal ability, authority and role
   • Seek debriefing as required
   • Use ongoing self-care and stress management practices to manage work-related stress

Performance Evidence

The candidate must show evidence of the ability to complete tasks outlined in elements and performance criteria of this unit, manage tasks and manage contingencies in the context of the job role.

There must be evidence that the candidate has:

provided three Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander clients with information about social and emotional support by:

- communicating effectively with client to identify specific social and emotional needs

- providing information about available support options and referring client as appropriate in consultation with client and other health professionals

- maintaining records as required

- following up counselling and/or other referred support effectiveness with client

- managing own work-related stress and applied self-care strategies, including using debriefing services

- demonstrating culturally appropriate and safe communication skills when interacting with clients and/or significant others at all times.

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Knowledge Evidence

The candidate must be able to demonstrate essential knowledge required to effectively do the task outlined in elements and performance criteria of this unit, manage the task and manage contingencies in the context of the identified work role.

This includes knowledge of:

organisation policies and procedures and legislation or regulations relating to:

- client confidentiality

- referral, including various levels of urgency, and follow-up of client

- mandatory reporting

- notifiable communicable diseases

- limits of own ability and authority

- reporting procedures

- documentation

- basic knowledge of distinctions between counselling, social and emotional, and mental health support and how each relates to Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander communities

scope of own role in providing social and emotional support

available counselling, social and emotional support services and associated referral processes

organisation policies on counselling

basic information on human psychology and mental health care

basic counselling principles

culture and spirituality issues

impacts of trans-generational trauma on individuals, families and communities around:

- identity

- loss of land

- culture

- language

- ceremony

legislative and confidentiality requirements

community views on counselling needs

self-care strategies for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Health Worker, including debriefing, own counselling and employee assistance programs

identifying and referring grief, dying and bereavement issues, such as:

- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander views on death, dying, grief and bereavement as contrasted with views in non-Aboriginal communities

- stages of grief

- methods of coping with grief, dying and bereavement

- ways in which Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander families may be assisted (e.g. in making funeral arrangements).

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