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Of course! Dialogue is how we are best able to challenge each other! So important in our field. I tend to get wordy, so I’m approaching this in bullets to spare you something that isn’t digestible. (also, just FYI, I’ve worked with similar populations in residential settings so I totally get the frustration. There is a lot to be said about how our MH system, for e.g. has institutionalized people and created a culture of learned dependence. Totally relevant here but probably based stuck to the side and saved for a different post. I chose to NOT stay in this field because of what I assume are the same things leading you to this situation.)

1. I have to push back on need vs. want. I agree that there is a difference here, but I don’t agree that this is the approach to understand what is happening with these folks. We, as outsiders, really can’t determine what someone else’s needs and wants are. We may perceive it as not that important (a want) but to the person themselves they do NEED that item or service. Again needs vs. wants, without collaboration from the client, is a values judgement. Just saying this to be mindful of it as you work with these more challenging residents. They’ll pick up on that judgement. If they do ‘need’ the service that seems optional, you want to understand why that is perceived as a need. IME there is always something there once you start peeling away the layers. When you understand what is there, then you can start looking at strategies to help. Maybe they really do need what they ask for, maybe there are other more ‘legitimate’ ways of getting that help which you could assist them with. The conversation needs to start with them, and not you.
   
   
2. In terms of the resident you have, I can tell you have a handful! First I want to point out a few observations
   a. We learn to exaggerate our needs to get the services that we legitimately do need. I have had to coach clients to embellish their disability for certain services they are eligible for (and need) because otherwise we would need to deal with the lengthy appeals process. Folks who minimize their needs suffer. SO we as a society has created this situation – and your residents sounds like she is being very smart in figuring out how to manage it.
   b. She has a disability, there isn’t a question about that. Maybe she exaggerates the symptoms but let me point something else out. What does she have to gain for throwing out meds and not using her scooter? Don’t know what her disability is, what is clear is that she NOT being treatment compliant. She isn’t taking her meds (and they aren’t the fun kind to sell so no reason to exaggerate to get meds to throw out). She isn’t using the aids she needs, etc. I would be concerned about her taking care of herself. IME many people with degenerative issues avoid accepting that. Consider the possibility that both is true. She knows what she needs and exaggerates it to get what she is eligible for – but also is clearly not taking care of herself, and maybe has some ambivalence about what her care should be. This isn’t fraud. At best it is survival and at worst it is a woman who is sick and not taking care of herself. The sort of exception is selling Ensure. Technically this might be something should could get in trouble with – but why would you hurt someone who is trying to get by? Selling Ensure, for e.g. is VERY common. Our public benefit system is horrid and fails to address people’s needs. We don’t receive enough SNAP, PA, etc. People are barely surviving under the poverty. When we, as a society, do this to people – how can we then penalize them for trying to make the best of it and survive a little better off of nothing? Also, Ensure is $$$$ and I’m sure that the person she sells it to is getting a deal. Good. Again we give people nothing to survive on, let them try and make the best of it.
   
   My main point is that you can support this client, and get her help, without doing something you find unethical. To do this, though you need to move past you own mishegas associated with clients such as this resident. Your scenario describes, to me, a person in need of support. Your role is not to determine if she should qualify, or if she is needy enough for a service. It sounds like she could use an aid, and that you should continue to provide supportive, client centered, and judgement free services to her.
   
   
3. Ah this also makes sense. Welp, she tried, and it didn’t work ;-) I hope that dealing with that isn’t on you then. That really is a management issue to decide if they wish to enforce their own rrules. If so, great. If not, don’t sweat it – nothing you can do and not worth the ulcer. In the realm of messed up things, trust me, it could be VERY worse. I live in a city with a housing crisis and have had this come up with single people in 3-4 bedroom homes. They get angry when they need to pay more rent for the rooms – but refuse to downsize. I get it, but it can be INCREDIBLY frustrating from the outside.
   
   
4. The welfare queen is a myth. I would recommend reading more about it and thinking about the implications. Our jobs are not o be gatekeepers deciding who is worthy of services or needy enough. Our jobs are not to decide if you deserve what you are asking or investigate your circumstances to catch you in a lie and report you. Our job is to walk alongside you, follow your lead, and to the best of our ability help you manage, achieve, and thrive. A few quick reads: https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2016/09/welfare-queen-myth/501470/ https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Welfare-Queen-Prize-Winning-Journalists/dp/0684840065 The myth of the welfare queen was based on one woman, and let me tell you, with confidence, she is far from a typical occurrence. http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/history/2013/12/linda_taylor_welfare_queen_ronald_reagan_made_her_a_notorious_american_villain.html If we have a .01% chance of coming across someone like this, is that reason enough to treat all of our clients suspiciously? Doing so is probably one of the many reasons that our field is fairly ineffective. Clients don’t trust us, because social workers treat them as criminals, and then the social workers blame them for not doing what they want. Really it is the social workers’ job to assess and engage.
   
   
5. I mean this is the absolute kindness, and most honest way possible. Given the lense with which you see your clients, it might be time to consider a different line of work. I don’t mean leave social work – but find something in a different population, with a different type of task. When you have these feelings towards your clients, at best you stop being effective. At worst you are causing harm. I can tell from your thoughtfulness throughout this thread that you are a smart and balanced person. It is ok to decide that a certain environment or population is not right for you and that you need to find somewhere else that is a better fit. Sometimes, once you are farther away from this situation you can more easily understand what was going on without being held down by your own feelings and viewpoints. As I said earlier – I’ve been there and the best thing you can do when you realize you can’t provide equal services to all your clients is to find a different setting where you can. It is a hard thing to tell yourself, but doing so is what makes someone a great social worker.
   
   edit: for some reason the formatting keeps renumbering the last 3 items - should be 3-5 ;-)

This actually sounds like a pretty fantastic practicum. You'll get medical experience, cultural experience, and you won't have to deal with all the "bean counters" in a hospital or HMO like setting. It will provide you with a fantastic foundation.

After reading your more detailed explanation, I encourage you also to read up on various cultural differences, as well. You didn't mention your race/culture, but when I was in school, I didn't quite understand the absolute importance of cultural sensitivity. Yes, we Americans get that people are different, but we don't get that clients will literally shut down if you're not doing what is familiar to them culturally. I was pasty white, naive and I jumped in with both feet. But, I got out in the field and realized very quickly that if you don't conform to what they expect, you might as well be banging your head against the wall. For example, with elderly Asians, the family usually relies on the elder son to make all the decisions. If you spend your time talking to mom and dad and not the elder son (yes, I actually DID this one, and trust me, it was a spectacular exercise in frustration!), you will get no where fast. They don't understand that you don't know these things, because they don't understand the cultural differences yet either, and they think you're being incredibly rude, will not tell you that, and they will completely shut down and refuse to work with you. In my example, I had a client almost die in the home because the wife simply would NOT allow me to help her with basic life care stuff for her husband. Her husband was wasting away in a bed and I was flailing around trying to give her free interventions to help him, but she simply refused everything. An Asian coworker pointed out my error in a staffing and told me I needed to ask her son, not her. When I called the son to discuss the issues, he immediately instructed me to intervene and informed his mother what I would be doing. She allowed the interventions and acted like I hadn't been begging her for weeks to do these very same things. It was a sobering learning experience for me. Cultural issues are HUGE! When you find yourself hitting a brick wall like that, there is a good chance its a cultural issue.

As for medical terminology, no you don't need to become a medical student in it or anything, but if you are familiar with it, you'll have an easier time. The thing about terminology is that it is based in Latin and broken down into prefix, root, and suffix components. If you learn those components, even though you have never seen the word before, you can quickly figure out what the diagnosis means. This comes in very handy. For example, if you learn that "itis" always means "inflammation"...you will know that any diagnosis with "itis" in it means that area has inflammation. So when you see the diagnosis appendicitis, you can quickly figure out what it means without having to look it up. Don't worry, you will be able to look up things, and you'll spend a lot of time doing that in the beginning, but if you have some basic terminology down, it will make your life easier one on one with the clients.

Just go into a Barnes and Noble and look around in the health or RN section. You'll find books that dumb it down and help you learn it. Some of them even have flash cards that are really helpful.

Something like this would work:
https://www.amazon.com/Medical-Terminology-Dummies-Beverley-Henderson/dp/1118944046/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1468686079&sr=8-1&keywords=medical+terminology+for+dummies

As for the concern about service providers not speaking the language of the clients, yes, you will have that, but honestly, that was less of an issue than I thought it would be. Often, the service providers have translators, too. It is their responsibility to make sure they can communicate with their patients, just like it is yours to make sure you can communicate with yours. If they're not doing this, hold them accountable. I found that most of the time, the providers DO have someone that speaks their language. But, medical providers speak a different language than all of us, so even if they are talking in your client's language, they still have trouble understanding the concepts. If you have a translator, this will be easier, but keep in mind there will be times when you have a client in front of you and no translator. Happens to me ALL THE TIME, even now, and we DO have translators, as well. I've literally had to get on Google Translate and type in what I want to say and butcher out the words. Fortunately, thus far when stuff like that happens, my clients have found it hilarious. But obviously, it is not a long term solution, but you do what you have to do sometimes with limited resources.

As for complex health issues and explaining them, you'd be surprised. You also need to remember you're not a doctor and if you explain things WRONG, you're doing harm. So you always want to stay within your scope of practice and lets the doctors do the complicated stuff. Like with the CHF example I gave you, they don't have to understand all the technical chemical components of CHF and whats happening in their body at a cellular level. They just have to understand that if they start to gain weight (retain fluids), they need to get to a doctor so the doctor can stop the retention process, and if they don't, their heart will stop. That is not difficult to explain to them. Don't tackle the huge complicated explanations; patients don't understand all of that or will ask you for more information if they really do want it. They just want to understand the basic concepts to stay healthy. Even I, with my experience, don't want all that from my doctor. Just tell me what to do, when to take what, and how often to come in here to get this checked out...I do not need to discuss the molecular structure of a DNA molecule of the current years flu strain.

And yes, if you see those podcast ideas working, bring them up with your supervisor and discuss if something like that would work for the agency. That is one reason why I love interns. They're fresh out of the classroom, they're excited, they are learning all the newest stuff, and they have all these fantastic ideas!

If they can afford it and you have one in your area, I would recommend the family take the dementia patient to an adult daycare every now and again, or even everyday. It gives the family some time to breathe and do what they want. And it gets the patient out and about.

Don't know if the family needs some sort of distractions or not? Female dementia patients often respond favorably to baby dolls. Actual dolls. Like the ones small girls play with. NOT a Barbie, but a bigger doll. Like this:
http://www.amazon.com/JC-Toys-16-inch-Washable-Purple/dp/B00CE2PTC6/ref=sr_1_9?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1464743750&sr=1-9&keywords=baby+doll
You don't need to get all the accessories (bottles, clothes, etc.). I have seen many female dementia patients who will sit and hold a doll for hours on end. Either their vision or that part of their brain doesn't allow them to see the doll as a doll but makes them think it's a real child and so they'll sit there all day with one, and talk to it and burp it and such. I've not seen a man with a doll, so I don't know if it would work or not.

The other thing that works for dementia patients is a "fidget blanket." This is sometimes called different things, like an activity blanket or activity apron, here's a link to one: http://www.amazon.com/Special-Needs-Sensory-Activity-Apron/dp/B004PMNZ7E/ref=sr_1_1?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1464744012&sr=1-1&keywords=fidget+blanket
but it is basically a blanket with zippers and buttons and velcro and various things for them to do with their hands. I've seen some that mount on the wall and have mechanical type stuff like a vise and a lock and other things, but then you have to get the patient up and over to the wall and I just don't see that being practical.

Oh, and something that works for patients of both genders: picture books. Especially if the patient used to love to read. Get them a big stack of picture books (kids books are great for this), or if you can find a big thick catalog, that also works (they won't know the difference and no biggie if a page gets torn).

All of these ideas are for patients in the more advanced stages of dementia. Your mileage may vary. I wouldn't pull any of these out of my hat for someone who was just recently diagnosed with dementia. I had a colleague who used coloring books and crayons with her patients but I never could quite pull that one off. Other people have also had success with giving them a basket full of towels or socks or something innocuous like that and having them fold laundry all day. (They'll never finish because they're likely to undo what they just did).

The big thing for families is letting them know that strange behaviors are perfectly normal and getting them some help so they don't have to do everything themselves because then they just get burned out fast.

Make sure the patient doesn't have access to the car keys, if they're still mobile. Find out if they're a wandering risk. I had a patient once who was a major escape risk.... literally if you turned your back, he would be out the door, over a 6 foot privacy fence, and running down the major highway that was a block away. The easiest way to fix this is to move the doorknobs and locks either up or down on the door. Let me explain: a person with a "normal" or still fully functioning brain knows where the doorknob is and how to operate it. Now take someone with dementia and move the doorknob up to, say, chest height or up even higher (just not at eye level). The patient will go to open the door and not be able to find the doorknob and they will be stumped. It will distract their brain from their usual thinking of "I've got to get out of here" to "where is the doorknob" and many advanced stage dementia patients won't think to look up (or down), and even if they do find it, they won't remember why they were looking for the doorknob in the first place, and hopefully wander off and find something else to get into.

Someone has told me that it's like having a 3 year old again, and it really is. You just have to find something to entertain them. Experiment!! It helps to know what they did for a living.... if they were a homemaker, the baby doll and folding laundry is likely to work. If they were a sports fan, put on ESPN (had one old lady that loved to watch ESPN all day everyday).

Just gonna upvote here because this is pretty much what I would've said. :)

Identifying triggers, teaching healthy communication skills, writing action/crisis plans, going round and round on actually FOLLOWING the action/crisis plans, teaching age-appropriate expectations/limits/consequences/discipline, going round and round on structure/consistency/routine in actually FOLLOWING age-appropriate... well, you get it.

It often feels like you make very little progress but I've learned that's because my interventions are so short-lived (my unit is short term/intensive). It is really hard to see progress in ~3 months. Metrics really helped in identifying progress when it feels like all you're doing is putting out fires. I also found pretty good success using brief solution-focused therapy (I used this book).

I actually like this job. Families are often less guarded in their home environment. Sometimes it can be really distracting (TV, visitors, so many other toys for kids to play with and ignore you over!) so you have got to be comfortable setting limits. It does feel like I make a difference when I see a whole family interacting in a healthier way or get feedback on something I didn't even realize they'd heard. And I get a lot of clues from the home environment that I wouldn't have in an office. Plus I get to do some fun stuff that I couldn't do in an office... like demonstrate what "positive engagement" looks like (oh look, it's family fun night, we're gonna make brownies and play Stop Think and Relax!). Modeling is powerful stuff. Some of these families have forgotten that they even CAN enjoy time together...

I love this! Thank you so much for working on this project!

Here are my suggestions please add what you feel is appropriate :)

FICTION
A Door Near Here by Heather Quarles. - it's about a family with an alcoholic mother from the children's point of view. As an ACOA (adult child of an alcoholic) it's quite realistic as far as the mother's behavior.

A Wrinkle in Time - includes father/daughter relationships, sibling relationships and self esteem.

Push Inspiration for the movie Precious. I love this book but it is a tough one to read.

NON FICTION:

Hospice related: Final Gifts I also recommend this one to families of a dying loved one

My Mother Myself mother daughter relationships

Will I Ever be Good Enough. Another book about mother-daughter relationships but focuses on dealing with mothers with narcissistic behaviors.

Tiny Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayad

The 5 Love Languages by Gary Chapman.

Hyperbole and a Half Funny as fuck and talks about depression.

I do have a list of caregiver books that I give to loved ones of someone on hospice. I'm too lazy to look it up right now lol but if there's interest let me know and I'll post it.

Also, is there any interest in a social work related podcasts wiki? I know quite a few that deal with issues we work with such as alcoholism, addiction, recovery etc.

I'm in the opposite situation- did ABA for several years, now in residential. Look into this book. It's short and sweet, but a great step-by-step introduction into how to work with children with autism, esp. non-verbal children, on developing age-appropriate language. It's such a great and rewarding job, but remember to find joy in the small accomplishments. It's slow, incremental progress, but the end result is so incredibly worth the hard work. Good luck!

When you say drug and alcohol unit, what do you mean exactly? Are we talking medical detox only? Yikes. Or are we talking general rehab?

If you are literally doing nothing but medical detox and then the patient moves on to treatment elsewhere, then beware the burnout. ETOH and Opiate detox patients in the throes of detox are some of the most unpleasant people to be around I can think of (and I work in a maximum security prison!). This is generally offset by getting to work with them long-term and seeing the benefits of sobriety and clarity in the long run, so hopefully you'll get to see that aspect, too.

If we're talking just general rehab, then it won't be so bad. The experience you get will also depend on whether or not your clients are voluntary, and if so what level of volunteerism there is there (for example a "voluntary" methadone program can feel very involuntary to an opiate addict).

You will definitely get myriad opportunities to hone your motivational interviewing skills. It can be frustrating at first as you learn the meaning of success in working with this population. Sobriety is hard work and takes time. Sometimes seeing your client shoot up four times a day instead of six after a month's work is the best improvement you've seen in any client all month, and you have to learn to motivate yourself with these little steps.

Anywhoo . . . I used to work at a methadone clinic. Let me know if you have any specific questions.

Edit: Just saw that you've not yet been in an MSW program. If you can spare the cash, I recommend picking up Miller and Rollnick's book. It'll give you the foundation you need to start practicing and understanding motivational interviewing, and if the program you get into focuses at all on direct practice then you're probably going to end up needing it anyway.

I was in a similar place a couple of years ago. Had been a high school teacher, then a programmer. Was looking to switch to social work, but didn't exactly know what social work even was. I bought this book and found it very helpful -- just social workers in a variety of fields, describing a typical day for them:

https://smile.amazon.com/Days-Lives-Social-Workers-Professionals/dp/192910930X/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?ie=UTF8&qid=1540490741&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=days+in+the+lives+of+social+workers&psc=1

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Best of luck to you! I'm now in my second year of a three-year MSW program and definitely enjoying the classes and my field placement.

Yes, they won't just remove a child, and will explore every avenue beforehand. They may just ensure she is well supported. If the mother has these traits she is likely to have had a traumatic early childhood, as NPD and BPD are now strongly linked to developmental trauma and emotional neglect. In other words, she needs some strong coaching in parenting. The child's emotional safety should be prioritised. You are obviously a source of support for him. have a look at some useful books, this is the best one: http://www.amazon.com/Stop-Walking-Eggshells-Borderline-Personality/dp/1572246901

Days in the Lives of Social Workers

> Spend a day with social workers in 58 different settings, and learn about the many career paths available to you. Did you ever wish you could tag along with a professional in your chosen field, just for a day, observing his or her every move? DAYS IN THE LIVES OF SOCIAL WORKERS allows you to take a firsthand, close-up look at the real-life days of 58 professional social workers as they share their stories. Join them on their journeys, and learn about the rewards and challenges they face.
>
> This book is an essential guide for anyone who wants an inside look at the social work profession. Whether you are a social work graduate student or undergraduate student, an experienced professional wishing to make a change in career direction, or just thinking about going into the field, you will learn valuable lessons from the experiences described in DAYS IN THE LIVES OF SOCIAL WORKERS.
>
> The 4th edition includes four new chapters, a new appendix on social media and mobile apps, and features a foreword by Elizabeth J. Clark, executive director of the National Association of Social Workers.

There's a third edition book out now, and there are a few significant changes in the model. http://www.amazon.com/Motivational-Interviewing-Third-Edition-Applications/dp/1609182278

If you like to hold a book, this is probably the first one you should get. However, there are tons of great free resources for MI training on the internet as well.

Here are a few manual-type easy reads:

http://www.psychmap.org/uploads/Motivational%20Interviewing%20brief%20guide.pdf

http://www.motivationalinterviewing.info/resources/CTI_MI_Pocket_guide.pdf

http://www.motivationalinterview.org/Documents/LearnersManualforMotivationalInterviewing.pdf

this is about coding (how well an interviewer is using MI) but there are some good examples here: http://www.motivationalinterview.org/Documents/miti3_1.pdf

. The Complete Adult Psychotherapy Treatment Planner: Includes DSM-5 Updates



I love these series. They have a children and adolescents, progress notes and homework guides. I highly recommend them

Texts and Reference Books

Days in the Lives of Social Workers

DSM-5

Child Development, Third Edition: A Practitioner's Guide

Racial and Ethnic Groups

Social Work Documentation: A Guide to Strengthening Your Case Recording

Cognitive Behavior Therapy: Basics and Beyond

[Thoughts and Feelings: Taking Control of Your Moods and Your Life]
(https://www.amazon.com/Thoughts-Feelings-Harbinger-Self-Help-Workbook/dp/1608822087/ref=pd_sim_14_3?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=3ZW7PRW5TK2PB0MDR9R3)

Interpersonal Process in Therapy: An Integrative Model

[The Clinical Assessment Workbook: Balancing Strengths and Differential Diagnosis]
(https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0534578438/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_38?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ARCO1HGQTQFT8)

Helping Abused and Traumatized Children

Essential Research Methods for Social Work

Navigating Human Service Organizations

Privilege: A Reader

Play Therapy with Children in Crisis

The Color of Hope: People of Color Mental Health Narratives

The School Counseling and School Social Work Treatment Planner

Streets of Hope : The Fall and Rise of an Urban Neighborhood

Deviant Behavior

Social Work with Older Adults

The Aging Networks: A Guide to Programs and Services

[Grief and Bereavement in Contemporary Society: Bridging Research and Practice]
(https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0415884810/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1)

Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy

Motivational Interviewing: Helping People Change

Ethnicity and Family Therapy

Human Behavior in the Social Environment: Perspectives on Development and the Life Course

The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work

Generalist Social Work Practice: An Empowering Approach

Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association

The Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills Workbook

DBT Skills Manual for Adolescents

DBT Skills Manual

DBT Skills Training Handouts and Worksheets

Social Welfare: A History of the American Response to Need

Novels

[A People’s History of the United States]
(https://www.amazon.com/Peoples-History-United-States/dp/0062397346/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1511070674&sr=1-1&keywords=howard+zinn&dpID=51pps1C9%252BGL&preST=_SY291_BO1,204,203,200_QL40_&dpSrc=srch)


The Man Who Mistook His Wife For a Hat

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

Life For Me Ain't Been No Crystal Stair

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

Tuesdays with Morrie

The Death Class <- This one is based off of a course I took at my undergrad university

The Quiet Room

Girl, Interrupted

I Never Promised You a Rose Garden

Flowers for Algernon

Of Mice and Men

A Child Called It

Go Ask Alice

Under the Udala Trees

Prozac Nation

It's Kind of a Funny Story

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

The Yellow Wallpaper

The Bell Jar

The Outsiders

To Kill a Mockingbird

https://www.amazon.com/Stop-Walking-Eggshells-Borderline-Personality/dp/1572246901
I would recommend this book. I know it is not a clinical or a professional book but it is good. It is well written and gives insight to how it is to live with somebody with BPD.

I have a degree in "alcohol and drug studies" and studied neuropsychology of addiction a lot, and was an addictions counselor, so I've read a lot about addiction from different perspectives, bio, psych, social, spiritual.

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First here is how addiction is defined by ASAM American Society of Addiction Medicine https://www.asam.org/resources/definition-of-addiction

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The best book for understanding how addiction works is a text book I had called "uppers downers all arounders" https://www.amazon.com/Uppers-Downers-All-Arounders-8thEd/dp/092654439X/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1GIILV43VW7UU&keywords=uppers+downers+all+arounders+8th+edition&qid=1555505562&s=gateway&sprefix=uppers+downers%2Caps%2C258&sr=8-1

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Also highly recommend watching this hour and a half PBS presentation with leading neuroscience researchers on addiction which really gets into the nature of self control, behavior regulation for those who are severely addicted, and long term what people can expect with regard to recovery. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0lL1MN2yCs

Boyfriend bought me The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime that I have been trying to finish between coursework and readings for months. Really good!

Helping People Change by Miller & Rollnick is a great text for learning MI.

Just picked this up after my prof passed it around in class. It's a terrific resource.

https://www.amazon.com/Social-Work-Treatment-Interlocking-Theoretical/dp/019023959X/ref=sr_1_5?keywords=social+work+theories&qid=1570660012&sr=8-5

I use this and find it helpful

https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Adult-Psychotherapy-Treatment-Planner/dp/111806786X/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?keywords=treatment+plans+and+interventions+for+depression+and+anxiety&qid=1564866269&s=gateway&sprefix=treatment+pla&sr=8-2

Upvote for you, Im a veteran in the exact same situation, though Im doing BS in psych. LEO career goals sort of disappeared due to competition and getting older. I hope to start MSW or related helping profession grad school next year.

I would suggest this book if you are going to do research,
and this one for general writing. Both come in handy for APA formatting, especially the first one.