My name is Jessica Bianco. I was born on November 9, 1990 in Bronx, New York at Albert Einstein Hospital. I am currently attending New York City College of Technology part-time while working full-time as a medical records clerk in a physical therapy office. I am pursuing a degree in Human Services.

I was influenced to become a Human Services worker because of my great uncle who is also my godfather. He is 74 years old and has Alzheimer’s which is dementia. Dementia is a loss of brain function that occurs with certain diseases. This gets worse over time affecting a person’s memory, thinking and behavior. My uncle is wealthy man who was getting used by other family members for his money until my grandmother took him in and started to take care of him. One day he decided to leave the house and wandered into the town. Everyone in my family had to get into their cars and started looking for him as well as the sheriff of the town. We eventually found him but he would do this frequently until my grandmother got a special lock for the door; luckily nothing happened to him the few times he wondered. With time he became too much for my grandmother to handle, so we put him in a nursing home. I experienced someone in my family who was mistreated and taken advantage of by family members which I feel is not fair, this is what influenced me to get into this profession because the elderly are frequently being taken advantage of especially those with Alzheimer’s because they have memory loss so people think they can get away with certain things.

Some personal and professional strength’s I have that will enhance my effectiveness for professional practice is that I get along with people. I am hands on and love to learn new things. I am also open to new experiences and think positively as well as I have the best interest at heart. It is very important to think about others and not be selfish. This is a quality that I have had since a very young age. I am also very organized and detailed in my work.

The client population that I would like to work with is the elderly. I can learn about appreciation by working with the elderly because a lot of young people do not realize or appreciate how much their family members do for them. Being around the elderly, you can learn a lot because since they are older, they are more experienced and they always have a story with a lesson to be learned. Some challenges with working with the elderly may be that they do not want to open up to you or they might not be friendly. You need to acquire the skill of patience to professionally serve this population. I want to serve this specific population because of my uncle. The human service needs of this population are company, sincerity and to avoid them from verbal, physical, and emotional abuse as well as stealing. The human service skills tht I have begun to develop are working and learning to get along with different types of people of different ethnicities, ages, and people with different situation and learning how to not judge others, as well as patience, understanding, and the ability to listen. These skills specifically assist these populations’ unique needs because you need to be understanding with the elderly and listen to what they have to say because they are older and more experienced and have more knowledge about life.

From the time of my graduation to ten years following I envision my career path ranging in a variety of places. I hope to work in a nursing home, a hospital, and maybe even a retirement facility. In the future I hope to manage and direct a nursing home. By working in these types of facilities over the years I hope to gain knowledge and experience different types of obstacles that will make me appreciate more and look at them from a different view point.

Therefore, by working with this population I will have allot of learning opportunities and learn as well as experience working with different types of people. This will also make a huge impact on the individual, family or community; symptoms of a disorder, stigma-myths and coping mechanisms of the population; social and cultural and realities; services and gaps; and professional and personal challenges in working with this population.