A professional counselor has 12 core functions and two of those functions are screening and assessment. Therefore, it is important that a professional counselor has a thorough understanding of both of those functions. As stated in Professor Robin Fernandez’s lecture, “Prevention, Assessment, and Diagnosis,” a counselor should have the “ability to identify available screening and assessment instruments to facilitate appropriate placement within the continuum of care, establish a clear diagnosis of the problem, and develop an appropriate treatment plan.” In this essay five screening and assessment tools that are used in the identification of a substance use disorders diagnosis will be described. Examples that illustrate how the tools can be used
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The DAST-20 can also be accessed online by visiting http://counsellingresource.com/lib/quizzes/drug-testing/drug-abuse/. This helpful tool can be used in an interview or in a self-evaluation and much like the MAST it is simple to review and determine if an individual needs further guidance. The DAST-20 is a questionnaire consisting of 20 questions. It is designed for evaluating adult-aged drug-users and it has the ability to distinguish between several classes of drug users (Fernandez …show more content…
It is an extremely short and simple, yes or no assessment tool that measures is only four questions long. It is another tool that can be conveniently accessed online by visiting http://counsellingresource.com/lib/quizzes/drug-testing/alcohol-cage/. The CAGE questionnaire is designed to be administered by a professional counselor and it is presented as a verbal diagnostic interview. The number of questions that receive a “yes” answer will assist the counselor in determining whether the client is of high suspicion or of high likelihood of alcoholism (Fernandez 2016). Other versions of the questionnaire can be found to assess youth and even drug users, rather than the initial test intended for use in dealing with alcoholism (Fernandez
The DAST-20 can also be accessed online by visiting http://counsellingresource.com/lib/quizzes/drug-testing/drug-abuse/. This helpful tool can be used in an interview or in a self-evaluation and much like the MAST it is simple to review and determine if an individual needs further guidance. The DAST-20 is a questionnaire consisting of 20 questions. It is designed for evaluating adult-aged drug-users and it has the ability to distinguish between several classes of drug users (Fernandez …show more content…
It is an extremely short and simple, yes or no assessment tool that measures is only four questions long. It is another tool that can be conveniently accessed online by visiting http://counsellingresource.com/lib/quizzes/drug-testing/alcohol-cage/. The CAGE questionnaire is designed to be administered by a professional counselor and it is presented as a verbal diagnostic interview. The number of questions that receive a “yes” answer will assist the counselor in determining whether the client is of high suspicion or of high likelihood of alcoholism (Fernandez 2016). Other versions of the questionnaire can be found to assess youth and even drug users, rather than the initial test intended for use in dealing with alcoholism (Fernandez