Risk Management In Social Work

This new text is based on Frederic G. Reamer's key reference for practitioners, Social Work Malpractice and Liability: Strategies for Prevention. Rooted in his own experiences as an expert witness in court and licensing board cases, the volume introduces the concepts of negligence, malpractice, and liability before turning to the subject of risk management. Reflecting on recent legal cases and research, Reamer identifies a variety of problems in the social work field relating to privacy and confidentiality, improper treatment and delivery of services, impaired practitioners, supervision, consultations and referrals, fraud and deception, and termination of service. He also explores the unprecedented ethical challenges created by new digital technologies—such as online counseling, video counseling, and practitioners' use of social networks and social media—and describes current issues relating to HIPAA compliance and access to electronic health records (EHR) and health information exchanges (HIE).He concludes with practical suggestions for social workers named as defendants in lawsuits and respondents in licensing board complaints.

This new edition gives a clear and up-to-date picture of how the Children Act 1989 is working. All chapters have been updated with the latest case law, legislation and guidance.

Timely and essential, Ethics and Risk Management in Online and Distance Social Work identifies pertinent ethical challenges and ethically related risk-management issues that social workers should consider when using digital technology to assist people in need. The text illuminates how the use of technology is influenced by traditional ethics concepts, including consent, privacy, confidentiality, professional boundaries, documentation, and other issues. The text begins by discussing how social workers today are leveraging technology to provide services to clients and the importance of continually considering the ethical issues involved in using such communication methods. It addresses the specific ethical issues involved in video counseling, cybertherapy, text messaging, self-guided web-based interventions, smartphone apps, and other forms of digital communication. Ethical, regulatory, and practice standards are covered, as well as challenges in integrated health and social work educational settings. The final chapter is dedicated to preventing and managing ethical and legal risk. Ethics and Risk Management in Online and Distance Social Work is an ideal textbook for advanced courses in social work. It is also an excellent resource for social workers interested in incorporating online or distance communication in their practice.

The study of ‘risk’ in social work involves complex interplay between human behaviour, emotion, evidence of fact, professional values and organisational systems. This book brings together contributions from key social work researchers and theorists from the UK, USA, New Zealand and Italy, writing with a focus on aspects of risk within social work. It examines key debates concerning risk in contemporary social work practice, including ethical dilemmas, approaches to decision-making and the challenges of ignorance and errors. Contributions range from the perennial challenges of how one uses formal knowledge when assessing risk to emerging risks arising from the counterterrorism agenda. This book will enable practitioners, policy makers and researchers to appreciate the complexities of risk in different settings and apply this understanding to their own practice. This book was originally published as a special issue of the Journal of Social Work Practice.

First published in 1982, Risk and Social Work provides a useful framework for analysing risk in the social welfare context. Surprisingly, social work and other helping professions have hitherto given little attention to the use and meaning of ‘risk’, although the term is frequently employed, with clients and helpers being described as ‘at risk’, or ‘in danger’. The media have taken up these terms, noticeably in cases involving child abuse, the elderly and conditions in psychiatric institutions, often at the expense of our image of the social services. Paul Brearley’s discussion of the analysis and management of risk in social work will therefore be of value to people working in the helping professions. Mr. Brearley begins by establishing a series of definitions, drawing primarily from the commercial insurance field, and from the literature on scientific and workplace hazards. These definitions form the base for a framework of risk analysis which stresses the importance of values and the chance element in decision making about risk. He shows how this framework can be used in practice in emergency and risky situations, and looks at the management of hazards and uncertainty with particular reference to social work practice.

At a time when accountability and the avoidance of risk are increasingly demanded of social workers, the ability to make clear and informed decisions is essential. This book, written for practicing social workers undertaking their ASYE and compulsory CPD, has been designed to help professionals make sound judgments in increasingly complex contexts and under pressure. The focus is on empowering front-line professionals through reflective practice, so that they are able to draw on multiple factors and perspectives and make sound problem-solving judgements. The book begins with the core concepts, client focus and legal background before moving on to consider the collaborative processes and the nature of individual judgements. It then considers particular dimensions of social work decision making, such as safeguarding, taking risks, assessment and dynamic decision tools and processes. It then concludes by look at the organisational context of decision management, with a focus on supervision, training and effective communication.

Assessing and managing risk is a daily challenge for social workers. Working with risk can be anxiety provoking and demanding, requiring great skill and high levels of confidence. In these complex situations, social workers have to work hard to get the balance right. This innovative book focuses on the development and use of skills for work with risk. Using a range of case studies, examples and reflective exercises, the authors examine the key skills required to work effectively with risk. Various chapters focus on assessment skills, gathering and evaluation of information, decision-making challenges, and ethical issues. Recognising the difficulties presented in the context of busy statutory work, there is a strong focus on practical skills and tips for improving risk management plans. The book also pays careful attention to the emotional impact of working with risk, with a final chapter on the management of self in the challenging and sometimes distressing world of social work. Written in a reader-friendly, accessible style, the book will be essential reading for students and staff across a range of social work settings, including community care, adult services, child protection and mental health.

This path-breaking text constructs a new way of thinking about social work based on contemporary social theory. Working in a counter-tradition that is suspicious of a number of governing ideas and practices in social work, it draws on themes from Beck, Giddens, Rose to explore the impact of risk society and neo liberalism on social work.