There is so much more than just the psychology specific knowledge that I had to acquire in order to interact with clients. The way I ask questions, the questions I ask and the way I understand them are dependent on the knowledge I have about the culture.
For example, if we have a new client join Day Care at VIMHANS (Vidyasagar Institute of Mental Health and Neuro-Sciences), the client first needs to be assessed. One of the ways the client is assessed is by conducting a Mental Status Examination. This is a standardized format in which the clinician records the psychiatric signs and symptoms present at the time of the interview. Let's say I want to test the client for his or her memory function and ask him or her what he or she ate last night but I get no answer, I have to be able to give suggestions about what he might have eaten. He obviously will not have eaten a burger and some fries so I have to know what they eat in an Indian household in order to give logical suggestions.
I am learning very day and I think I am getting more and more a hang of it even though I do mistakes all the time. Sometimes there is only the patient and the conductor of the assessment and the parent/caregiver/family member is interviewed separately or they are sitting together. But as of now my assessments are repeated again with a professional. At times, they let me do it for practice when everybody else is busy at the moment; otherwise I observe.
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