Interprofessional Collaboration in Social Work Practice

Book excerpt: How can social workers be more effective in collaborative work? What are the skills, knowledge and values required for collaborative practice? How does collaborative social work practice impact on the experience of service-users and carers? These questions are faced by social workers every day and interprofessional collaborative practice is high on the policy agenda for trainees and practitioners. Written primarily for social work students and practitioners, although having relevance across the wider range of stakeholders, this book explores the issues, benefits and challenges that interprofessional collaborative practice can raise. Chapter-by-chapter the book will encourage the reader to critically examine the political, legal, social and economic context of interprofessional practice. It also explores how social workers can work effectively and collaboratively with other professions while retaining their own values and identity. Key features include: - activities to illustrate the ways in which collaborative working can impact upon the experiences of service users, carers and practitioners; - discussions looking at the different people and organisations with whom social workers might work in practice; - examples of research and knowledge for practice; - a glossary to act as a useful quick reference point for the reader; - a companion website. Engaging and well-written, each chapter also includes case studies, reflective questions and links to further reading and sources of information. Interprofessional Collaboration in Social Work Practice will be essential reading for social work qualifying students and for practitioners.