Presenting concerns

• Presenting concerns are the issues for which the client has come into contact with the social worker. Presenting concerns may arise in any domain. Physical concerns may include pain management or palliative care needs; psychological concerns may include depression, anxiety, substance use, or other mental health issues. The client may need help with social factors such as difficult family relationships, feelings of isolation, financial concerns, or a lack of social supports. Other social concerns may involve larger social systems such as difficulty accessing medical benefits, a need for housing or welfare benefits, or assistance navigating the complexities of the child welfare or education systems. Clients may have spiritual concerns, including existential questions about the meaning of life, or may need assistance with integrating their spiritual beliefs with other belief systems. When working with families as clients, the social worker may need to help the family identify the presenting concern of the whole family unit by bringing together the individual viewpoints of each member. It should be noted that the concerns of the client can be significantly different from the concerns of professionals or the referral source. Information on presenting concerns should be obtained from the referral source as well as from the client. The social worker should establish a timeline that indicates when the concern first arose and whether it has continued, abated, or increased over time. The client’s ideas about the causes of the concern and how he or she has attempted to address it should be noted