Using interesting case studies and avoiding cumbersome policy "lingo," Kathleen McInnis-Dittrich presents a truly different policy book: one that looks at social welfare policy through the eyes of the social work practitioner. By integrating policy and practice, the author shows how policy is an important part of social work practice.

The first new social work history to be written in over twenty years, Social Work Practice and Social Welfare Policy in the United States presents a history of the field from the perspective of elites, service providers, and recipients. This book uniquely chronicles and analyzes the development of social work practice theory on two levels: from the top down, looking at the writings, conference presentations, and training course material developed by leaders of the profession; and from the bottom up, looking at case records for evidence of techniques that were actually applied by social workers in the field. Additionally, the author takes a careful and critical look at the development of social work methods, setting it apart from existing histories that generally accept the effectiveness of the field's work. Addressing CSWE EPAS standards at both the BSW and MSW levels, Social Work Practice and Social Welfare Policy in the United States is ideal both as a primary text for history of social work/social welfare classes and a supplementary text for introduction to social work/social welfare or social welfare policy and services classes.

Within a historical and contemporary context, this book examines major policy practice and research issues as they jointly shape child welfare practice and its future. In addition to describing the major problems facing the field, the book highlights service innovations that have been developed in recent years. The resulting picture is encouraging, especially if certain major program reforms I are implemented and agencies are able to concentrate resources in a focused manner. The volume emphasizes families and children whose primary recourse to services has been through publicly funded child welfare agencies. The book considers historical areas of service—foster care and adoptions, in-home family-centered services, child-protective services, and residential services—where social work has an important role. Authors address the many fields of practice in which child and family services are provided or that involve substantial numbers of social work programs, such as services to adolescent parents, child mental health, education, and juvenile justice agencies. This new edition will continue to serve as a fundamen­tal introduction for new practitioners, as well as summary of recent developments for experienced practitioners.

Almost everyone would like to see the enactment of sound, practical measures to help disadvantaged people get off welfare and find jobs at decent wages, and over the past quarter-century federal and state governments have struggled to develop just such programs. How do we know whether they are having the hoped-for effect? How do we know whether these vast outlays of money are helping the people they are designed to reach? All welfare and training programs have been subject to professional evaluations, including social experiments and demonstrations designed to test new ideas. This book reviews what we have discovered from past assessments and suggests how welfare and training programs should be planned for the 1990s. The authors of this volume, each a recognized expert in the evaluation of social programs, do more than summarize what we have learned so far. They clarify why the issue of the proper conduct and interpretation of evaluations has itself been a subject of continuing controversy. In part, the problem is organizational, requiring the integrated efforts of social scientists, public officials, and the professionals who execute evaluations. In addition, there is a dispute about scientific method: should evaluators try to understand the complex social processes that make programs succeed (or fail), or should they focus on inputs and outputs, treating the programs themselves as "black boxes" whose machinery remains hidden? Evaluating Welfare and Training Programs will be important for policy researchers and evaluation professionals, social scientists concerned with evaluation methods, public officials working in social policy, and students of public policy, economics, and social work.

Animal welfare has long been recognised as central to the role of the veterinary professional, but this is increasingly aligned with the welfare of humans and the broader environment in which we co-exist. This is the first book dedicated to the role of the veterinarian in One Welfare, a concept that recognises the interconnections between animal welfare, human wellbeing, and the environment. The book demonstrates, through a wide range of international case studies, why professional ethics and the use of good evidence is integral to this role. Contributors bring a rich variety of writings, each with their own perception of the role of the veterinarian in improving animal welfare and human wellbeing. One Welfare in Practice: The Role of the Veterinarian emphasises the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration and solutions: it is essential that veterinary practitioners recognise when other professionals or disciplines need to be consulted to benefit both animals and humans. With its multiple, fascinating approaches to One Welfare, this book will inform and inspire the veterinarian to find areas where collaborative action reaps the greatest rewards. This unique book shows how veterinarians can and are contributing to improving animal and human welfare, offering practical advice as to how the profession can further engage in One Welfare in a range of settings.

Practice Skills in Social Work and Welfare has established itself as the essential text to prepare students for the wide-ranging challenges they will face in today's human service sector. This new third edition continues the text's core strength of combining grounded theory with practical examples to build the reader's confidence and expertise in key areas of practice. Part I outlines the anti-oppressive and strengths-based practices that underpin the book's approach and provides the context for learning practice skills in a group setting, during community development projects and with individuals. Part II focuses on developing effective relationships with clients, illustrating through realistic scenarios how social work and human service workers can apply their practice skills in a range of settings. In Part III the essential elements of client assessment are explored, including risk assessment and cross-cultural perspectives. Issues surrounding intervention are examined in Part IV from working with families and groups to challenging constructively and safely, while research, evaluation and facilitating closure are covered in the final part. This third edition is fully revised and updated, and features new material on using information technology, working with Indigenous Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and Maori, and engaging with families in the statutory system. 'The main strength of the book is the consistency of its themes throughout the text.' - Karen Heycox in Australian Social Work

Comprehensive Handbook of Social Work and Social Welfare, Volume 2: The Profession of Social Work features contributions from leading international researchers and practitioners and presents the most comprehensive, in-depth source of information on the field of social work and social welfare.