Case Study

You are a public health nurse who works within the socioeconomically diverse city of Toronto. Within this last 5 years of practice, you are faced with new challenges: a global pandemic affects the various clients within his catchment. This week you are working with two client cases who are both in need of mental health counselling as related to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Client one:

Francis is a 35-year-old pansexual transgender person who is experiencing increased stress from working as a part-time housekeeper at 2 different hospitals. Francis uses they and them pronouns. They are a single parent of a 5-year-old adopted daughter. They are the primary provider for their mother who lives with them and their daughter in an apartment within the city. Due to the pandemic, Francis is forced to leave one of their jobs at a hospital to reduce the spread. Francis looks for more hours with this one hospital but is not given as many as they need to pay their monthly bills. Also, they are fearful of contracting the COVID-19 virus at work and then bringing it home to their vulnerable daughter and mother. To gain more hours, they are working more night shifts and they are facing more stress trying to find a balance between work and finding time for their daughter. They had a previous history of alcoholism and have been sober for the last 5 years since adopting their daughter. However, Francis finds themself thinking about drinking more often because they feel frustrated about their current situation. They contact you as a community health nurse in pursuit for more mental health support for coping; however, currently options are limited as most mental health services are private and Francis does not have health benefits from the hospital.

Client two:

Kimmy is a 42-year-old female of Asian descent, who works for a corporate bank as a financial accountant. She lives in a 3-bedroom condominium in the city with her husband and 2 children. Both her husband and she are now working from home and her children are all going to virtual school. This is the first time when they all have been at home together for such a long time together and she finds they are all on edge as they all have different schedules. The lack of dedicate space to complete their work and a lack of quiet area for classes and meetings has caused increased stress. Often one person has to work on the kitchen table and the internet connection is slow due to increased usage. They have been going to the park for walks, but they are feeling isolated. The city-wide lockdown has limited the amount of socializing outside their family unit, and they are too scared to go to local restaurants to eat. Kimmy is looking for mental health support to help her family better cope with being confined and socially isolated. Both she and her husband have robust health benefits that can be extended to their family. Kimmy seeking your support in selecting the right resource for her family.