Changing community care, Vicky White and John Harris; improving the quality of written assessments - a participative approach, Ann Morrison; progressing race equality - dynamics of partnership, Mehrunnisa Lalani and John Whiting; working with health - from collaboration to partnership in a hospital setting, Carol Roy and Eileen Watts; working with health - partnership in a community setting, Barbara Walters; empowerment as a participative process, Linda Flemming; partnership in prevention - messages from older people, Denise Tanner; guardianship - a participative approach, Nicky Barry; multidisciplinary partnership in a community mental-health team, Jez Millen and Lesley Wallman-Durrant; developing good practice - prospects and possibilities, Chris Hallett.
Drawing together theory and practice, this book presents guidelines for good practice in community-care work. The contributors describe the planning and implementation of pioneering initiatives in the community, analyze their effectivenss and outline their practical implications in the light of the current legislative framework. The collaborative action-research projects with community-care teams can be used as case studies for students and post-qualifying social workers and as a practice resource for more experienced professionals. They include a local rehabilitation scheme developed jointly by the social and health services, the implementation and development of a race-equality strategy in partnership with ethnic-minority communities, and a scheme for linking individual social workers to general practice clinics. Key concepts such as risk-taking, guardianship and empowerment are examined, and the contributors highlight the central importance of partnership and participation in community-care practice.