A consideration of the nature and purpose of mental health social work
| Pages | 90-96 |
| Published date | 25 May 2012 |
| Date | 25 May 2012 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/20428301211232504 |
| Author | Robert Goemans |
| Subject Matter | Health & social care |
A consideration of the nature and purpose
of mental health social work
Robert Goemans
Abstract
Purpose – This paper aims to provide an analysis of the mental health social work role, its contribution to
social inclusion, and its ability to translate this into practice.
Design/methodology/approach – The paper considers national policy, research and theory to
consider the nature of social work and the mental health system.
Findings – While social work is ideally placed to challenge the biomedical model and promote social
inclusion, organisational and other failings would appear to seriously undermine its ability to do so.
Originality/value – The paper considers some important issues facing social work and mental health,
and raises points for thought and discussion.
Keywords Social work, Social care, Mental health, Social inclusion, Personalisation, Recovery,
Mental illness
Paper type Conceptual paper
At a recent national mental health social work conference, we were asked to consider what
the unique contribution of social work is to mental health services. As one might expect,
there was a variety of passionately held opinions and much discussion of social inclusion,
safeguarding, law, and values. A clear consensus was eventually reached, however,
indicating the value of social work in working with families and social systems, and in working
with people through situations of high complexity and risk.
I had cause to reflect on this at a recent university planning meeting, where I asked the
programme leader for mental health nursing what he considered to be the unique
contribution of mental health nurses: his reply, of course, was working with families and
working with complexity and risk. I am fairly sure that if I was to ask the same question of any
good psychologist, psychiatrist, occupational therapist or anyone else working in mental
health, they would claim a somewhat similar answer.
This, of course, leads us to ask a number of questions, but the one which I intend to examine
here is ‘‘so what exactly is social work’s contribution?’’ In answering this we will need to
consider whether the social work contribution should be anything different to what it is, and
also to examine the factors such as profession al regulation, national policy, and
commissioning arrangements which dictate what social workers are actually able to do.
Within all this, we can only create meaningful considerations if we add in the question of what
do service users actually need from social workers.
What is social work?
Social workers work with a wide range of service users, including abused children, people
with mental health problems, drug users, people with disabilities, asylum seekers, homeless
people, sex workers, pregnant teenagers, vulnerable older people, anti-social families, and
persistent criminals. What do all these people have in common? They are all people that
PAGE 90
j
MENTAL HEALTHAND SOCIAL INCLUSION
j
VOL. 16 NO. 2 2012, pp. 90-96, QEmerald Group Publishing Limited, ISSN 2042-8308 DOI 10.1108/20428301211232504
Robert Goemans is based
at Lincolnshire Partnership
NHS Foundation Trust and
the University of Lincoln,
Lincoln, UK.
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