TPC Journal V8, Issue 3- FULL ISSUE

238 The Professional Counselor | Volume 8, Issue 3 Conclusion Ecological thinking is a powerful skill, and one we argue is necessary for clinically competent counseling. The ecological conceptualization and treatment planning process outlined in this article is designed to provide a structured and systematic template for helping counselors identify clients’ complex needs, as well as the many influential variables at play in the past, present, and future. Engaging from an ecological perspective requires counselors to understand their clients as embedded in multiple systems. Further, it calls upon counselors to develop a deep understanding of the social, economic, and political contexts in which their clients live, and to develop systemic intervention skills. Utilizing this model in clinical settings could enrich the lives of clients, who may come to embrace a more nuanced and inclusive way of conceptualizing themselves and their environment. Counselors-as-advocates are inherent in this model, and those professionals who espouse ecological thinking cannot ignore the multitude of powerful forces that either enhance or impede our clients’ well- being. Clinicians who understand and engage with their clients through this lens may find that ecological psychoeducation can lead to clients-as-advocates as well. Clients who come to understand themselves and others as people in environments may find their individual-level goals are supported and enhanced by goals associated with learning about and eventually acting upon systems-level variables in their lives, thus increasing the recovery capital (Hewell et al., 2017) available to them within their own environments. Attention to the American opioid epidemic is increasing based on advocacy by citizens, journalists, public servants, and health professionals. As focus and resources are directed to this complex problem, ecologically informed interventions by stakeholders in all of the interconnected systems are advised to both save and improve lives now and in the future. Conflict of Interest and Funding Disclosure The authors reported no conflict of interest or funding contributions for the development of this manuscript. References Angres, D. H., & Bettinardi-Angres, K. (2008). The disease of addiction: Origins, treatment, and recovery. Disease-a-Month , 54 , 696–721. doi:10.1016/j.disamonth.2008.07.002 Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The ecology of human development: Experiments by nature and design. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Bronfenbrenner, U. (1994). Ecological models of human development. In M. Gauvain & M. Cole (Eds.), Readings on the development of children (2nd ed., pp. 37–43). New York: Freeman. Chang, C. Y., Barrio Minton, C. A., Dixon, A. L., Myers, J. E., & Sweeney, T. J. (Eds.). (2012). Professional counseling excellence through leadership and advocacy . New York, NY: Routledge. Dasgupta, N., Beletsky, L., & Ciccarone, D. (2018). Opioid crisis: No easy fix to its social and economic determinants. American Journal of Public Health , 108 , 182–186. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2017.304187 Gul, R. B., & Boman, J. A. (2006). Concept mapping: A strategy for teaching and evaluation in nursing education. Nurse Education in Practice , 6 , 199–206. doi:10.1016/j.nepr.2006.01.001 Hewell, V. M., Vasquez, A. R., & Rivkin, I. D. (2017). Systemic and individual factors in the buprenorphine treatment-seeking process: A qualitative study. Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention, and Policy , 12 (3), 1–10. doi:10.1186/s13011-016-0085-y Hinkle, J. S. (2014). Population-based mental health facilitation (MHF): A grassroots strategy that works. The Professional Counselor , 4 , 1–18. doi:10.15241/jsh.4.1.1