Whiting & Birch (E-Journals)
Not a member yet
1165 research outputs found
Sort by
Fostering matters
Get PDFThe views of stakeholders are increasingly seen as important to the delivery of services. The perspectives of foster carers therefore, can contribute to the organisation, management and provision of placements to children who are looked after by the local authority. This paper reflects the views of Foluke, a member of the symposium ‘Fostering Matters’ which took place at the University of Salford in March 2007. Foluke is not only an experienced foster carer and trainer of foster carers, but also an experienced social worker with current responsibility for educating social work practitioners. There is no suggestion that the views expressed in this paper represent the ‘truth’ of being a foster carer. On the contrary, it is appreciated that the opinions of foster carers will vary in relation to their social characteristics (such as class, gender, ‘race’ or ethnicity), their personal biographies and the context in which their opinions are elicited. Nevertheless, this paper contains important reflections on a main theme of the symposium - the professionalisation of foster care. Furthermore, comments on the quality of practice in relation to assessment and training may be of value to those responsible for the continued improvement in standards
Using digital technologies in community mental health
Get PDFThe Internet is not a ‘fad’ that will soon disappear, but is rather a new ‘environment’ in which people interact with others, engage and have experiences. The Internet is a tool with never before seen potential. Utilizing this new technology, mental health professionals can provide evidence based interventions and prevention programs to a number of mentally ill and distressed persons. The following study explores the use of ‘Buddy’ an online mood monitoring service to determine whether self-reflection can help people with mental health problems understand the relationship between the things they do in their daily lives and their mental state and then endeavour to change their behaviour for the better. Through the personal accounts of 12 service users, the use of ‘Buddy’ as a self-management tool is investigated and a number of positive and negative issues are discussed
