Vicky is in her mid-fifties and is divorced with a grown-up family.

She has
grandchildren. She also has friends and some family round about with whom she
has regular contact, Vicky lives on her own. Her interests include gardening, theatre,
literature - both reading and writing herself - as well as her pets and her faith.
Vicky has a diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia and has spent a lot of time in the
Royal Edinburgh Hospital over the years due to prolonged periods of poor mental
health. She had to give up work a number of years ago because of this. Vicky has
been receiving daily support for about three years. This support includes: assisting
Vicky with practical tasks; offering emotional support; and helping her to find ways to
manage her mental health and general well-being.
One of the things Vicky receives support with is doing her weekly shopping.
Crowded places heighten her paranoia, making her think that people are talking
about her. You arrive at the house expecting Vicky to be ready to go, but instead she
is pacing up and down, looking really distressed. When you ask what is wrong, she
tells you there's no point in going shopping. When you ask why not, she tells you she
won't need it, as the voices are reminding her what a bad person she is and that she
doesn't deserve to live any more. You then notice that she has emptied all her
medication into a pile on the coffee table.

Casework
social worker
Alyssa
Alyssa is a 14-year-old female who has recently moved from Brisbane. Alyssa and her mother
(Diane, 33 years old) had moved to Brisbane for Diane’s temporary job. Diane and Alyssa then
moved back to their home town, once the Brisbane position ended. Diane was able to return to
her original position. Alyssa has been self-harming and has strong suicidal ideation and
describes feeling abandoned by her mother. Alyssa reports that her mother, Diane, spends all
her time either at work or with her boyfriend. This is Diane’s first relationship since Alyssa was
born. Alyssa tells you that ‘the boyfriend’ is totally wrong for her mother, Alyssa thinks he is too
old and that he is just using her mother. He is in between houses having sold one and not yet
purchased another and her mother has allowed him to move into their home. Alyssa tells you that
he uses her bathroom and that disgusts her. Alyssa reports that she misses her friends from her
school in Brisbane and does not really have any friends locally despite having lived in the town
most of her life. She tells you when she returned, she didn’t stop talking about how she missed
her Brisbane friends and as a result the ‘old friends’ told her to go away. Alyssa also informs you
that her grandparents are not interested in her at all and whilst her mother, Diane, has lots of
friends and family she does not feel that any of them including her mother care about her at all.
Alyssa also has serious issues relating to how she views herself. Alyssa states that she is “short,
fat and ugly”. Alyssa is about 5 foot tall, attractive, slightly overweight but not obese. Alyssa
moves slowly, displays little expression facially and struggles to make eye contact. There is no
reported history of family violence or child sexual assault, there is also no evidence to suggest
she was neglected as an infant.