Part I End-of-Life Decisions

Prior to completing this discussion, please read the American Psychological Association’s Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct (2010) and Fact Sheet on End-of-Life Care (2014), as well as the Block, S. D., et al. (2006), Kwak, J., & Haley, W. E. (2005), and Torbic (2011) articles required for this week. You will also be required to find two aIDitional peer-reviewed sources to support developmental psychology concepts and theory and apply them to this topic within the provided end-of-life case scenarios.
You are working as the social worker at an area hospital dealing primarily with end-of-life decisions and palliative care. For this discussion, you will be reviewing the PSY605 End-of-Life Case Scenarios document and making recommendations based on the information provided in the scenarios.

All end-of-life choices and medical decisions have complex psychosocial components, ramifications, and consequences that have a significant impact on suffering and the quality of living and dying. The issues involved in this process of decision making are based on issues of developmental stage, gender, race, ethnicity, culture, health, family, and physical, cognitive, and psychosocial states. For your initial post, you will apply concepts from developmental psychology to create your recommended courses of action for both Roger and Geri. Carefully review the PSY605 End-of-Life Case Scenarios document and then research at least one peer-reviewed article published within the last 10 years in the Ashford University Library for each of the scenarios.

For each scenario, explain human development in the context of the situation described using research to support your responses. Create a recommended course of action for each of the two scenarios by aIDressing the following questions:

What is the best recommended course of action for the client at this time, and why?

What potential effects would themes such as the client’s culture, ethnicity, family, education, and gender have on the situation and recommendation(s)?

How does the client’s developmental stage factor into your recommendation?

How do the client’s physical, cognitive, and psychosocial states affect your recommendation(s)?

How might the developmental stage(s) of the client’s family member(s) affect your recommendation?

How will you present your recommendation(s) to both the patient and family member(s)?

What consideration(s) would affect your manner of presentation?

Are there considerations that cannot be processed at this time because of lack of information in the written scenario?

Analyze and comment on the ethical considerations in each of the scenarios. Note how the APA’s Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct might provide guidance. Evaluate the unique scholarly perspectives presented in your research to support your recommendations.

Part II Evaluate Existing Programming for People Across the Lifespan

Prior to completing this discussion, please read Chapter 21 from the Lerner, Easterbrooks, Mistry, and Weiner (2013) e-book and the review the list of programs included in the Federal Program Inventory published by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2013) required for this week.

For this discussion, you will take on the role of a developmental psychologist reviewing an existing program to assess the program’s efficacy for the developmental stage(s) of the target audiences identified. Using the Federal Program Inventory as a guide, search for a human services program at work either in your local area or online. Find a program of interest to you that serves the need(s) of a specific population of individuals. You may want to refer to the Program Proposal Tracks and Topics in Developmental Psychology document for ideas on the types of programs to look for in your search.

For your initial post, create a brief summary of the program’s details that includes the information below.
Program title

The program’s purpose

Who the program serves, including age group, gender(s), race(s), cultures(s), and any special groups identified (veterans, people with disabilities, dog owners, etc.)

Program location

Agency/group running the program

When (or how often) the program takes place

You will then evaluate the elements of the program and the effectiveness of these elements for individuals and/or the community it serves. Explain human development in the context of current trends by evaluating the program through the lens of developmental psychology. Examine the application of developmental theory and research to policy and community agency as they are utilized in this program

How is the program appropriate for the targeted population, and why?

Are there any ways in which the program is not appropriate? If so, explain how the program or the population could be adjusted.

Are people able to easily find and get to the location? Is it accessible to the specific groups for whom the program is intended?

Is there a cost associated with the program? Is the cost appropriate, given the target population and expected outcomes? Why, or why not?

Which domains of development (physical, cognitive, and/or psychosocial) are emphasized by this program? How are these emphasized?

Could skills within other domains of development be incorporated into this program? Make recommendations as to how these might be included.

Is the program implementation (how often is it offered and what occurs each time) effective in promoting its purpose and achieving its goals? If so, how? If not, what suggestions would you make for improvement?

Analyze ethical considerations related developmental psychology within the program. Does the program appear to follow a moral and ethical code when working with people? If so, how? If not, what does the program need to aIDress immediately?