An Evaluation of the Importance of Communication for Inter Professional Practice for Social Workers - Essay Example

Introduction It is critical that all people within a society experience a healthy, tolerant, safe, inclusive and fair way of living. To ensurethis occurs requires a dynamic economy as well as a high standard of integrated public services (Perth & Kinross Council, 2005a). Social work has a core role in the establishment, maintenance and evaluations of these goals. Working in alliance with other professionals, from a social work background as well as from an assortment of other disciplines (e.g., psychology, nursing, or legal), is an essential contribution to achieving a healthy social functioning within Scotland (communitycare.co.uk, 2006a). One primary goal of the social worker is to close the opportunity gap between the rich and the poor by way of aiding individuals and families to have more control over their lives, and through the development of hope for the future. To be effective the inter-professional working context of social workers needs to communicate effectively and efficiently. For only by achieving a streamlined team-focused work environment can it be hoped that independence and resilience amongst the rest of the population will be promoted (Perth & Kinross Council, 2006). Without optimal communication structures between social workers, and their contemporaries in other disciplines, can a "person-focused" approach be truly implemented and an integrated social care system achieved. This dissertation aims to explore the perceptions of the importance of inter-professional communication among social workers in the Perth & Perth & Kinross Council (Scotland) district. Firstly, a review of literature supporting effective communication in the social care system will be presented. Secondly, the rational for this dissertation and the research question will be delivered. Next, the methodology for data collection and analysis to answer the research question will be outlined. Finally, ethical considerations for this study will be detailed. A conclusion shall summarise the main points of the paper and demonstrate the importance of inter-professional communication for social workers. Review of the Literature To achieve the goal of the comprehensive and effective use of the entire social service workforce, and to build capacity, develop confidence and trust at all levels of the social care system, it is necessary that dramatic shifts in the balance of power and control take place (Perth & Kinross Council Council, 2006). It is clear that inter-professional communication plays a significant role in the breaking down power imbalances and at establishing trust and confidence among social workers. In 2006 the Scottish Executive released the document Changing Lives to herald its strategy to transform social work as a profession in the 21st century. Important to this strategy was the development of paraprofessionals (communitycare.co.uk, 2006b). However, the importance of communication of inter-professionals was not focused upon, and neither were protocols and policies to achieve effective communication outlined. This is a critical oversight considering that the working and organizational structures in Scotland are so diversified, and that the ultimate goal of the Scottish Executive is an integration of the social care service. It has long been recognized that the partnerships between social workers and other public, private and voluntary organizations are in need of change (Horby, 1993; Scottish Executive, 2006; Coulshed & Orme, 1998). Inter-professional communication must occur as social workers alone cannot be responsible and accountable for the strategies to solve social problems. In order to fully utilize available resources and expertise it is necessary that social care services align with the work of other disciplines with the understanding that together new ways of achieving national social care goals can be made. A key feature of 21st century social working, is working within a team environment. The social worker may find themselves working in a team environment comprised of other social workers, nurses, doctors, lawyers, police, psychologists, counselors, volunteers, chaplains, and other health and human service workers. The overlap of roles and services in the provision of social care has been indicated to extend and multiply the resources available to a person (Coulshed & Orme, 1998). It has been shown that cross-functional teams are much more flexible, and that when team members are able to ‘cover’ each other in general social care duties, the individual or family is afforded more comprehensive and careful care. Perhaps this is due to a sense of responsibility instilled in each team member, as they are aware that they can rely on others to recognize their strengths and to provide support for their weaknesses. With regard to Perth & Kinross Council Council, their strategic management documents emphasise a focus on self-evaluation in terms of communication between professionals as being one of their nine key areas of anticipated improvement (Perth & Kinross Council Council, 2005a, 2005b, 2006). A Communication Team has been established to identify inter-organisational and public needs and expectations of communication with the Council. It is anticipated that enhanced communication structures will contribute to other areas of improvement, such as Partnership and Joint Working, sound Governance and Management and Continuous Improvement of professional staffs. The Rationale Joint approaches to planning, implementation and evaluation of social care services provides an effective and efficient integrated "person-centred" approach to health and social care within the Perth & Kinross Council district (Perth & Kinross Council Council, 2005a, 2005b). New partnership arrangements can only occur by way of effective communication structures that promote inter-professional collaboration and innovation. A team-work approach to social work, and engages local authorities with professionals of other disciplines and widens the scope fore creative problem-solving and holistic social care. All of this has a direct impact on the structure, planning and delivery of social work services. The Research Question This dissertation aims to identify social workers perceptions of the importance of communication for inter-professional practice within the Perth & Kinross Council (Scotland) district. There are four main objectives: 1) To determine characteristics of communication which are most important to social workers. 2) To determine participant perceptions of inter-professional communication, their needs and expectations, and whether these factors are being met within their job role. 3) To plan and design a valid and reliable research study that explores the objectives. 4) To extend knowledge of the importance of inter-professional communication within a social worker context. Methodology Participants Recruitment of participants shall be undertaken through various social work organizations within the district of Perth and Kinross, using word-of-mouth recruitment (snowball sampling), as well as brochures and flyers on organizational notice boards, and newspaper and newsletter postings. Participants who are eligible to participate in this study are all registered social workers within these organizations, be they government, private or volunteer service providers. It is anticipated that 100 participants will be included in the sample, which will be comprised of females and males, a range of ethnic backgrounds, and of different levels of organizational hierarchy (e.g., outreach, case managers, or management). Purposive sampling will be used as it can effectively group participants according to criteria selected before the research begins (Milner, & OBrian, 1999; Patton, 2002). The selection criteria being that the social worker; are registered; has a good understanding of the English language; and has been working in their role for at least 6 months. Purposive sampling is a popular method, as the sample size does not have to be fixed before the project begins. It is also an advantage for this study as the sample size will be constrained by time and available resources (Mack, Woodsong, MacQueen, Guest & Namey, 2005). Snowball sampling is a common purposive technique, often termed chain-referral sampling. Participants tap into their social networks to refer potential participants to the researcher (Mason, 1997). Materials As a semi-structured in-depth interview will be carried out, necessary materials will include notebooks and writing materials, as well as a tape-recorder, tapes and extra batteries. A semi-structured in-depth interview provides a human element to the research process (Bryman, 2004; Shank, 2002). It is a flexible method in that it uses a guide of questions as a framework, whilst allowing the participant to have a free flow of conversation. As such, it provides an opportunity for the participant to talk in-depth about a topic (Mason, 1997). Although the order of items in the question guide will not change across participants, the different responses of each participant will necessitate different promptings for additional details. This type of interview provides the researcher with insight into the experiences of participants, from the participant’s point of view (Guion, 2001; Mason, 1997). The interview is a one-to-one process, usually, and allows the researcher to gauge the participant’s interpretation of the relationships they see between events, people and social values (Bryman, 2004). The researcher asks neutral questions and listens actively, does not approve or disapprove of answers, and does not encourage the participant to provide particular answers, instead facilitating the participant to follow up on previous answers (Padgett, 2004). For this project tape recordings of interviews will be used to type transcripts that will also incorporate researcher notes taken during the interview. The data will then be thematically coded for analyses (Patton, 2002). Design This project will use a qualitative research design, utilizing in-depth interviewing. A field assessment will be carried out with social workers from a variety of local organizations. The independent variables shall include: age, gender, ethnicity, level of education obtained, job role, length of time in the job role. The dependant variables for this study are; their definition of communication; perceptions of the importance of communication within the social work context; their needs and expectations of communication within their job role; their perceptions of needs and expectations of communication being met within their job role. Statistical analyses of the raw data will be undertaken with NUD*ST v. 4 and SPSS v. 12. Thematic analyses, frequencies and percentages, Chi Square and Pearson’s r correlations shall be the statistical analyses used for this research study. For thematic analysis, following each interview the written notes of the interviewer shall be summarised, and assessed for their relevance to the questions asked. Comments on observations made during the interview will also be included. The taped interviews shall be transcribed verbatim onto a word document. Two raters, who will be unaware of the research hypotheses, shall independently identify key themes in the transcripts, in regards to the research question (N.B. Research assistants shall be paid “in-kind”). Inter-rater reliability will then be checked, and themes with at least a moderate agreement (r = .60) will be included for further analyses (Shank, 2002). Key themes will be organised into broad categories and specific sub-categories and labels provided respectively (Patton, 2002; Shank, 2002). Again, inter-rater reliability will be used to reach at least a moderate agreement. The primary investigator shall then make interpretative conclusions about each category and sub-category, evaluate proportions within each group, where possible assess the strength of an attitude or perception, and identify issues that differ dramatically in opinion across the sample (Padgett, 2004; Shank, 2002). Frequencies and percentages shall be obtained via basic descriptive analysis of all variables. The Chi square test shall be used for all categorical variables (e.g., gender, job role, perceptions of needs and expectations). Continuous levels of measurement shall be used for Pearson’s r correlations (e.g., age or length of time in the role). Procedure Potential participants shall make contact with the primary investigator by way of telephone, and if they meet the selection criteria a time and place for the interview shall be arranged. The interviews will be tape-recorded and participants thanked for their participation, and informed of when a summary of results will be released for their perusal. Contribution At present there is a distinct lack of literature investigating social worker perceptions of inter-personal communication, regardless that government documents such as Changing Lives and The National Strategy for the Development of Social Workers (Scottish Executive, 2005) promote a team-approach and an integrated social care system. To date, the gaps in communication remain unknown, as do their influences on the ability for social workers to effectively undertake their role and to meet national standards of practices and outcomes. It is anticipated that a case study of Perth and Kinross Council local authorities will inform on practices that can be extended to the social care system of Scotland. Ethical Issues Informed consent needs to be seriously considered at the start of any research project (Shank, 2002). Consent is about participants making a reasonable choice to take part in the study, as such, that their aspirations need to “fit” with the goals of the research (Mason, 1997). To assure that the participants for the present study are fully informed, the primary investigator shall discuss the proposed consent form with her supervisor and colleagues, as well as have the form submitted to the university’s research ethics committee. This will assure the investigator that possible ambiguities in meaning, confusing sentence structures and missing information are less likely to exist within the form (Patton, 2000). Informed consent includes the awareness of the researcher that participation is dependant on the participants understanding of the aims of the project, and what is expected of them during their participation. Informed consent will ensure respect for the participants dignity (Mack et al., 2005). Coercion of participation will be avoided at all costs, as the emphasis is on voluntary participation (Penslar, 1995). Hence, informed consent will maintain the well being of the participants as its priority. Additionally, participants will be made aware of that their information shall directly contribute to a sharing of knowledge for other social workers. Also, that it will benefit them directly in that they will have the opportunity to express their experiences of communication within a social worker context. All participants shall be assured of their rights to confidentiality, anonymity, and voluntary withdrawal without penalty. It shall be made very clear to the participants that their answers to the interview questions shall in no way affect their future working relationships. They will be provided with an information sheet about study and the name and contact details of the researcher will be made known, and community contacts made available in case participants should be distressed by the interview (Penslar, 1995). When they feel that they understand their requirements for the study they sign an informed consent form. The consent form will be separated from the interview transcripts document, and also stored separately to ensure anonymity and confidentiality. The transcripts will be de-identified by using participant numbers. All data will be stored in a secured cabinet at the primary investigators office for at least 5 years. Only the primary investigator and their supervisor will have access to this cabinet. Conclusion It is clear that effective inter-professional communication is a critical issue to social working context. Determining the level of importance of communication within the Perth and Kinross Council district can inform the social care practices within its region, as well extend findings to further the understanding at a national level. References Bryman, A (2004) Social Research Methods 2nd ed Oxford, Oxford University Press. communitycare.co.uk (2006a) All change please Accessed February 15, 2007 from http://www.communitycare.co.uk/Articles/2006/10/26/101953/all-change-please.html communitycare.co.uk (2006b) Social work must brace itself Accessed February 15, 2007 from http://www.communitycare.co.uk/Articles/2006/05/18/54035/social-work-must-brace-itself.html Coulshed V & Orme J (1998) Social Work Practice: An Introduction 3rd Ed Basingstoke Palgrave Horby, S (1993) Collaborative Care: Interprofessional, Inter agency & Inter personal, Oxford, Blackwell Publishing. Guion, I (2001) Conducting an In-Depth Interview. Family Youth and Community Sciences Department Document, FCS6012. Mack, N, et al. (2005) Qualitative Research Methods: A Data Collector’s Field Guide. North Carolina, Family Health International. Mason, J (1997) Qualitative Researching: An Introductory Text. New York, Sage Publications. Milner J & OBrian P (1999) Assessment in Social Work. Basingstoke: Palgrave. Padget, D K (2004) The Qualitative Research Experience. Southbank, Thompson Learning. Patton, M Q (2002) Qualitative Research and Evaluation Methods. Thousand Oaks, Sage Publications. Penslar, R L (Ed.) (1995) Research Ethics: Cases and Materials. Indiana University Press, Bloomington. Perth & Kinross Council (2005a) Perth and Kinross Council Housing and Community Care Services Business Management and Improvement Plan 2006 – 2009 Accessed February 15, 2007 from Perth & Kinross Council (2005b) Working Together for Perth and Kinross the Community Plan 2004-2008 Accessed February 15, 2007 from Perth & Kinross Council (2006) Organisational Change and Improvement Plan Accessed February 15, 2007 from Scottish Executive (2005) The National Strategy for the Development of Social Workers Accessed February 15, 2007 from www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2005/11/07104403/44040 Scottish Executive (2006) Changing Lives Accessed February 15, 2007 from http://www.socialworkscotland.org.uk/resources/pub/Changing%20Lives%20-%20Implementation%20Plan.pdf Shank, G D (2002) Qualitative Research: A Personal Skills Approach. Columbus, Merrill/Prentice Hall. Read More