| Course | D390 Introduction to Health and Human Services |
|---|---|
| Task | Task 1 |
| Paper type | Client support and services analysis |
| Length | About 1,100 words, 4 pages |
| Format | APA 7 |
| School | Western Governors University (WGU) |
| Program | BS Health and Human Services |
| Updated | September 2026 |
Free sample paper for D390 Task 1
Supporting a Farmer Who Can No Longer Drive: Wellness Needs, Two Health and Human Services Organizations and the Professionals Who Would Coordinate Their Help
Student Name
Leavitt School of Health, Western Governors University
D390: Introduction to Health and Human Services, Task 1
Course Instructor
Month Day, Year
Supporting a Farmer Who Can No Longer Drive: Wellness Needs, Two Health and Human Services Organizations and the Professionals Who Would Coordinate Their Help
The Client and His Situation
Mr. Dale Ostrander is a composite 67-year-old retired dairy farmer who lives alone on the family farm eleven miles from the nearest town. Over the past three years, age-related macular degeneration has taken most of his central vision. His ophthalmologist told him last spring that he could no longer drive safely, and his license was not renewed. Two months ago his wife of 44 years, who has Alzheimer's disease, moved into a memory care facility forty minutes away because he could no longer manage her care. Their two adult children live out of state. Mr. Ostrander tells his primary care nurse that he is "stuck": he cannot visit his wife more than once a week, when a neighbor drives him; he has stopped reading his mail; he eats mostly canned soup; and he has twice missed his eye injection appointments. He says he does not want to leave the farm.
This paper uses the eight dimensions of wellness to describe how his situation affects his whole life, identifies two health and human services organizations that could help, and explains which professionals would do that work and how.
Wellness Across Eight Dimensions
In the model set out by Swarbrick (2006), wellness is a conscious, deliberate process that spans emotional, environmental, financial, intellectual, occupational, physical, social and spiritual dimensions, and argues that services should support the whole person rather than a single diagnosis. Mr. Ostrander's needs cross almost every dimension.
| Dimension | What is happening | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Physical | Poor diet, missed eye injections, risk of falls in the barn and house | Vision loss may progress faster; injury risk rises |
| Emotional | Grief over his wife's move, loss of independence, statements about feeling stuck | Possible depression, which is common with advanced macular degeneration |
| Social | Contact limited to one weekly visit and a neighbor | Isolation |
| Environmental | Rural farm with no public transit; home not adapted for low vision | Barriers to every service |
| Financial | Cannot read bills; farm lease income managed informally | Risk of missed payments and exploitation |
| Occupational | Lost the daily work that structured his life | Loss of purpose |
| Intellectual | Stopped reading; cannot use his phone's small screen | Reduced access to information |
| Spiritual | Has not attended his church since he stopped driving | Loss of a lifelong source of meaning and support |
The Risk the Team Should Not Miss
Depression deserves particular attention. Brody et al. (2001) found that about a third of older adults with advanced macular degeneration met diagnostic criteria for a depressive disorder, roughly twice the rate in community-dwelling older adults, and that depression added to their disability beyond what vision loss alone explained. Mr. Ostrander's withdrawal and his words about feeling stuck should prompt a depression screen at his next primary care visit, and any service plan should treat his mood as a need in its own right rather than a side effect.
Organization One: The Area Agency on Aging
Area agencies on aging are the local network, created under the Older Americans Act, that plans and coordinates services for adults 60 and older in each region (Administration for Community Living [ACL], n.d.). Through its aging and disability resource center, the agency serving Mr. Ostrander's county can offer an options counseling visit in his home, in which a trained counselor reviews his situation and connects him to services he qualifies for. Relevant services include home-delivered meals, which would address his diet; demand-response rural transportation for medical appointments and, in many counties, for visits to a spouse in long-term care; a caregiver support program for spouses of people with dementia, including a support group he could join by phone; and help from a benefits counselor to review whether he qualifies for programs that reduce his costs. The agency can also refer him to a volunteer or bill-paying program so that his mail and finances are managed safely.
Organization Two: Independent Living Services for Older Individuals Who Are Blind
Each state operates a program, funded under the federal Rehabilitation Act, that provides independent living services to people 55 and older whose vision loss makes daily activities difficult (Rehabilitation Services Administration, n.d.). Unlike vocational rehabilitation, this program does not require an employment goal, which suits a retired client. A rehabilitation teacher would visit his home to teach adapted methods for cooking, managing medications, reading mail with a video magnifier and using his phone's voice features. An orientation and mobility specialist would teach him safe ways to move around the house, the yard and the barn. The program can also provide low-vision devices such as magnifiers, high-contrast markings for stairs and appliances, and talking clocks, and it can link him to peer support groups for people adjusting to vision loss.
The Professionals and How They Work Together
Several health and human services professionals would share the work. The options counselor at the area agency on aging acts as the first point of contact and coordinator, completing an assessment and helping Mr. Ostrander choose which services to accept. The vision rehabilitation teacher and the orientation and mobility specialist deliver skills training in his home. His primary care nurse and physician screen for depression, monitor his eye treatment and can refer him to counseling. A social worker at the memory care facility can help arrange regular visits and include him in care planning for his wife.
Coordination matters because each professional sees only part of his life. With his permission, the options counselor would share a single list of goals with the others: eat at least one hot meal a day, keep every eye appointment, visit his wife twice a week, handle his own mail with a magnifier and stay on the farm safely. Each professional would report progress on those goals rather than on their own separate plans.
Respecting His Choices
Mr. Ostrander's wish to stay on the farm should guide the plan. Rural older men often value self-reliance and may see help as charity, so services should be framed as tools that let him stay independent rather than as signs that he cannot manage. He should be offered choices at every step, including the choice to decline a service, and his church community, if he wishes, could become part of his support rather than an afterthought.
Conclusion
Losing the ability to drive has affected nearly every dimension of Mr. Ostrander's wellness. Two organizations, the area agency on aging and the state's independent living program for older people with vision loss, together cover most of his needs, and a coordinator who keeps one set of goals in view can keep their help from arriving in pieces.
References
Administration for Community Living. (n.d.). Area agencies on aging. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Retrieved September 29, 2026, from https://acl.gov/programs/aging-and-disability-networks/area-agencies-aging
Brody, B. L., Gamst, A. C., Williams, R. A., Smith, A. R., Lau, P. W., Dolnak, D., Rapaport, M. H., Kaplan, R. M., & Brown, S. I. (2001). Depression, visual acuity, comorbidity, and disability associated with age-related macular degeneration. Ophthalmology, 108(10), 1893-1900. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0161-6420(01)00754-0
Rehabilitation Services Administration. (n.d.). Independent living services for older individuals who are blind. U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved September 29, 2026, from https://rsa.ed.gov/about/programs/independent-living-services-for-older-individuals-who-are-blind
Swarbrick, M. (2006). A wellness approach. Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal, 29(4), 311-314. https://doi.org/10.2975/29.2006.311.314
What the D390 Task 1 instructions ask
The first D390 task asks you to analyze a client's situation and the health and human services that could support them. Most versions ask you to describe the client, assess wellness across several dimensions, identify needs and risks, describe relevant organizations and what they offer, explain the roles of the professionals involved and how they would collaborate, and consider the client's values and choices. The client may be provided by the course or a realistic composite. Evaluators look for wellness assessed with a named model, organizations described accurately with their funding and services, professional roles that are specific, and a plan that respects the client's own goals rather than imposing a solution.
How this D390 Task 1 example is built
The analysis begins with the client's circumstances in concrete detail, such as distance to town and daily routines. Wellness is assessed across eight dimensions using a published model, so the reader sees how one loss affects many areas of life. A separate section highlights depression as a risk, supported by research. Each organization gets its own section describing its legal basis, services and how to access them. The professionals section explains who does what, from the options counselor to the vision rehabilitation specialist, and how information passes between them. The closing paragraph returns to his wish to remain independent on the farm. Research on vision loss supports the risk section.
Where the D390 Task 1 rubric puts the marks
Evaluators rate each D390 Task 1 aspect competent, approaching competence or not evident. A client aspect checks for a clear, specific description. A wellness aspect rewards an assessment across dimensions using a named model. A needs and risks aspect looks for priorities supported by evidence. Organization aspects want accurate descriptions of services, eligibility and funding. A professional roles aspect asks who is involved and how they collaborate. A client values aspect looks for respect for the client's choices. Evaluators expect sources for organizations and research, and they notice analyses that describe services the client could actually reach. A plan that shows how services reach a client who cannot drive earns more credit than one that assumes he can travel.
D390 Task 1 help: what sends it back
Client analyses are returned most often when organizations are described generically, such as a senior center helps older adults. Name the program, its legal basis and what it provides. Second, wellness dimensions are listed without the client's specifics. Describe how each is affected. Third, collaboration is mentioned without mechanics. Explain who refers to whom and how information is shared, with consent. Fourth, the client's own wishes are overlooked. Make them the guide for the plan. Finally, watch for risks that are easy to miss, such as depression or isolation, and support them with evidence rather than assumption. Read the organization's own eligibility rules before you describe them, since programs differ by state and funding year.
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D390 Task 1 questions, answered
Does the D390 sample use the same client as my course?
The client in the sample is a composite written to show the method. Your course may provide its own scenario, so apply the same approach to the details you are given.
How detailed should D390 organization descriptions be?
Detailed enough to show what each organization offers, who is eligible and how it is funded. The sample names the area agency on aging and state independent living services for the blind.
Which wellness model fits D390 Task 1?
A multidimensional model such as the eight dimensions of wellness works well because it shows how one change, such as losing the ability to drive, affects many areas of life.
Is the D390 dairy farmer real?
No. Mr. Ostrander was invented to illustrate the method. The organizations described are real types of programs, and the research on vision loss and depression is published.
Where can I find a free D390 Task 1 sample paper?
The complete client support analysis is on this page with notes. Send your D390 instructions and client scenario, and a first tailored analysis is written for you free.