Designed to lay sound foundations for continuing professional development in a world of rapid change, this Reader draws together key articles exploring the recent challenges facing professionals across the spectrum of health and social care. Topics examined include: accountability to service users, funders and communities; the skills needed for teamwork and collaboration; and ethical dilemmas of working in conditions of resource constraint, and engaging in questions of quality and performance review. The chapters reflect the similarities and differences between the NHS and social services. This a set book for the Open University course K302 Critical Practice in Health and Social Care.

New Ways of Working in Health and Social Care explores the range and depth of recent challenges facing professionals in health and social care.

Narrative-Based Practice in Health and Social Care outlines a vision of how witnessing narratives, paying attention to them, and developing an ability to question them creatively, can make the person’s emerging story the central focus of health and social care, and of healing. This text gives an account of the practical application of ideas and skills from contemporary narrative studies to health and social care. Promoting narrative-based practice in everyday encounters with patients and clients, and in supervision, teaching, teamwork and management, it presents "Conversations Inviting Change," an established narrative-based model of interactional skills. Underpinned by an account of theory from narrative studies and related fields, including communication theory and systems thinking, it is written for students and practitioners across a broad range of professions in primary and secondary health care and social care. More information about "Conversations Inviting Change" is available at www.conversationsinvitingchange.com. This website includes podcasts, presentations and further teaching material as well as details of forthcoming courses, and is continually updated with information about the approach described in this book.

This major new textbook will take a fresh look at professions and professionalism - what these terms mean and what they need to mean in the future in the health and social care field. Written by experienced teachers, the textbook: reviews the evidence on team and inter-professional working, teasing out the new perspectives and the skills required; examines what professional development entails and what it means in different fields of practice; tackles ethical dilemmas of practice alongside changing concepts in society of accountability; explores current debates about how professionals can be supported in their practice and how their performance is best regulated; and highlights the contribution that practitioners can make

This practical guide provides the knowledge and skills social workers need when navigating the complex health care environment, while having to continuously adapt to change. Substantially revised and updated, the fourth edition delivers a wealth of new information reflecting the rapidly evolving health care landscape. Full of practice-oriented advice, it encompasses all aspects of professional health care social work in the U.S. health care system, across all key settings. Throughout the fourth edition there is a strong emphasis on the importance of developing best practices that are evidence-based, culturally-sensitive, supportive, and ethically accountable. The book is also a call to action for social workers, who must not only be therapeutically effective but also professionally competitive with other health care providers offering similar services. Each chapter contains professional profiles in diverse practice areas along with a glossary, reflective questions, and relevant websites. New to the Fourth Edition: Major updates on all recent changes in health care practice and the ACA and the role of the health care social worker, including an increased emphasis on the role of social justice Updated information related to the NASW Code of Ethics, including use of technology and evaluation Increased emphasis on Evidence-Based Practice throughout Updated with the different roles of social workers, including medical social work in the military, VA hospitals and clinics, and advocacy for those who are serving or have served New sections on behavioral health and integrative practice, telehealth, Institutional Review Boards (IRBs), social work practice in emergency departments, and home health, intimate partner/domestic violence, mandated reporting, and duty to protect/duty to warn Major changes to health and mental health assessment, including updated DSM-5 and WHO assessments Examining ethical dilemmas, including vaccinations and new sections on pain and spirituality Completely rewritten content on prevention, health, and wellness coaching Key Features: Encompasses all aspects of professional health care social work in the U.S. health care system, across key settings and patient populations Highlights the need for more organizational and leadership knowledge Provides tools for adapting to all major changes in health care with updated roles and functions Includes a wealth of advice through professional profiles Supplementary material for instructors includes PowerPoints and an Instructor’s Manual with sample syllabus, course-related CSWE accreditation suggestions, classroom activities, and a test bank for each chapter

Drawing on the work of the Roundtable on Evidence-Based Medicine, the 2007 IOM Annual Meeting assessed some of the rapidly occurring changes in health care related to new diagnostic and treatment tools, emerging genetic insights, the developments in information technology, and healthcare costs, and discussed the need for a stronger focus on evidence to ensure that the promise of scientific discovery and technological innovation is efficiently captured to provide the right care for the right patient at the right time. As new discoveries continue to expand the universe of medical interventions, treatments, and methods of care, the need for a more systematic approach to evidence development and application becomes increasingly critical. Without better information about the effectiveness of different treatment options, the resulting uncertainty can lead to the delivery of services that may be unnecessary, unproven, or even harmful. Improving the evidence-base for medicine holds great potential to increase the quality and efficiency of medical care. The Annual Meeting, held on October 8, 2007, brought together many of the nation's leading authorities on various aspects of the issues - both challenges and opportunities - to present their perspectives and engage in discussion with the IOM membership.

Integrating Social Care into the Delivery of Health Care: Moving Upstream to Improve the Nation's Health was released in September 2019, before the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic in March 2020. Improving social conditions remains critical to improving health outcomes, and integrating social care into health care delivery is more relevant than ever in the context of the pandemic and increased strains placed on the U.S. health care system. The report and its related products ultimately aim to help improve health and health equity, during COVID-19 and beyond. The consistent and compelling evidence on how social determinants shape health has led to a growing recognition throughout the health care sector that improving health and health equity is likely to depend â€" at least in part â€" on mitigating adverse social determinants. This recognition has been bolstered by a shift in the health care sector towards value-based payment, which incentivizes improved health outcomes for persons and populations rather than service delivery alone. The combined result of these changes has been a growing emphasis on health care systems addressing patients' social risk factors and social needs with the aim of improving health outcomes. This may involve health care systems linking individual patients with government and community social services, but important questions need to be answered about when and how health care systems should integrate social care into their practices and what kinds of infrastructure are required to facilitate such activities. Integrating Social Care into the Delivery of Health Care: Moving Upstream to Improve the Nation's Health examines the potential for integrating services addressing social needs and the social determinants of health into the delivery of health care to achieve better health outcomes. This report assesses approaches to social care integration currently being taken by health care providers and systems, and new or emerging approaches and opportunities; current roles in such integration by different disciplines and organizations, and new or emerging roles and types of providers; and current and emerging efforts to design health care systems to improve the nation's health and reduce health inequities.