Final answer:
The primary goal in caring for someone with borderline personality disorder is establishing trust in relationships. This serves as a foundation for all other therapeutic work. Other strategies, including building assertiveness and encouraging social connections, are important but secondary to trust.
Step-by-step explanation:
The priority when planning care for a client with borderline personality disorder is commonly establishing trust in relationships. This goal is essential for creating a therapeutic environment where the client feels safe to express feelings and work on personal issues.
According to Erikson's theory, the main task of adolescence is to overcome role confusion and achieve a sense of identity, while older adults must overcome despair to achieve integrity. Although these developmental stages are valuable for understanding the client's background, they relate primarily to different life stages than those typically associated with borderline personality disorder.
Assertiveness, encouraging social connections, and focusing on progress rather than perfectionism may also be components of a comprehensive care plan, but these should follow the establishment of trust.