Practice Skills in Social Work & Welfare ─ More Than Just Common Sense

Human service workers need more than just common sense. Practice Skills in Social Work and Welfare offers a comprehensive introduction to practice skills required across the human service sector.The authors use critical analysis to systematically outline the key stages of interaction with clients: engagement, assessment, intervention and evaluation. Drawing on a strengths approach, they examine the skills needed for working with different types of clients: individuals, families and community groups. They also explore the dilemmas faced in daily practice, including the challenges of working with involuntary clients, clients from different cultural backgrounds, and clients in crisis situations.Practice Skills in Social Work and Welfare provides a model of integrated practice which incorporates the key components of ideology, theory, phase, skill and context. Detailed case studies demonstrate how welfare services can be delivered in different contexts. This second edition has been thoroughly revised and updated and includes new material on online services and strengths-based practice.Written by experienced teachers and practitioners from Australia and New Zealand, Practice Skills in Social Work and Welfare is a practical and user friendly text for students and reference for practitioners.

Jane Maidment has been a social work practitioner in mental health and has taught practice skills in Australia and New Zealand. She is a senior lecturer in the School of Health and Social Development at Deakin University.Ronnie Egan has extensive experience as a social work practitioner and supervisor in the community sector. She lectures in Social Work at Victoria University, Melbourne.