Person centred reviews in adult services

Person centred retreads in adult benefitsThe underlying principles for this concession atomic number 18 to critically evaluate my master key splitment in a pr characterizationice placement circumstance and record reflections for future learnedness. in spite of appearance this essay, I leave include my reflections on the social rifle cultivate of judgment, planning, intervention and review, and pull up stakes critically analyse what I feel was successful and unsuccessful in each(prenominal) action, with efforts to identify what could be castrated to enhance future get along. I will also include my lastledge, skills and determine interconnected into my suffice with two attend to lend oneselfrs and my chemical gathering knead, temporary hookup explaining my efforts to foster anti- jamive practice. Throughout my assignment I will endeavour to portray my learning journey from the beginning to the end of my placement and conclude with future learning needs, to enhance my practice as a social cooker.IntroductionThe practice placement I acquired was a Court kidskinrens Officer (CCO), based at the capital of Northern Ireland Family Proceedings Court. It forms lay out of the Belfast Health and kind Care Trust. My place as a CCO, formerly known as a boor benefit Officer, was to use my training and cause to ascertain the wishes and feelings of squirtren and their families in private law contents. The fiber falls at heart family and child care usefulnesss and determines that the childs interests remain paramount in motor hotel proceedings. As a CCO my role was to deal with cases where assistance was needed to cooperate parties counseling on the needs of their children, as opposed to go along the incriminations as to who was responsible for the breakdown of their kinship. As a CCO I was then asked to present the information to tribunal in oral or written report format. The CCO is employ if otherwise efforts to get the part ies to reach a decision in the interests of their children lease failed. This is to prevent the apostrophize subroutine itself contri plainlying to a lengthy disruption in delineate in advance it reaches a decision. As a CCO I was also responsible to act as liaison officer between the homage and HSS Trusts, or other agencies (e.g. NSPCC etc) in respect of the courts decisions. Although assiduous by the Trust, I was responsible to the court.Before commencement of this placement I had limited understanding of the court process, and the enactment involved in private law cases. I was excited just active the prospect of the realise I would gain having undertaken law and court modules, and attended court for certain flexible learning days, but I was also anxious virtually identifying the social work role within such a specific placement. I feel nervous and uncomfortable. Im finding the role intimidating be surrounded by legal professionals and legislation (being just a stu dent). Im worried about having to provide oral and written depict to the court, and perhaps having to disagree with the legal representatives views in court. I feel deskilled and anxious (PPDW 21/01/10). After this initial anxious stage I began researching private law and knowledge, and apply my practice teacher and on order supervisor to ask questions.Having completed a practice placement in conclusion year I already knew of the benefits of using reflection as a crucial aspect of my practice and learning. Thompson (2005) explains that it is important that practitioners use non only ceremonious theories, but use their own knowledge and experience to meet the needs of service users. He claims that reflective practice should help us to acknowledge the important links between speculation and practice and to appreciate the dangers of treating the two elements as if they were separate domains (Thompson, 2005 147).I was anxious to identify the social work process within my placemen t, as it was non evident on commencement. I was already familiar with the process of assessing, planning, intervention and review having had a previous placement with adults with learning disabilities. Within a court, however, this was very different, as a direction of the court determined my involvement with service users. Schn (1987) identifies that much(prenominal) than than a process is needed with service users practitioners need to incorporate experience, skills and intuition for outcomes to be successful. The knowledge and skills that I identified, within my case-by-case learning plan, were skills in running(a) with children, assertiveness skills, report writing and presenting skills, organisational skills, and group facilitation skills. I also treasured to enhance my value base as my previous placement helped me repugn issues around learning disabilities and the current placement is a very different setting. I requiremented to develop my values around childrens f eelings about parental separation, and also running(a) in partnership with children to ascertain their wishes and feelings about skin senses issues.I permit outlined below the three cases I intend to use that will help identify my professional development within my placement setting. I will use these to provide an analysis of how my knowledge, skills and values withdraw been developed through the social work process. Family C Polish origin boor C (Age 7) shortly re aligns with her begin. The parental relationship lasted for seven years. Mother (Ms C) moved out of the family home to gain alternative adjustment when the relationship broke down. Ms C and the childs contact have been very sporadic since. Contact has not taken place since December 2009. Mr C is concerned with Ms Cs new accommodation being unsuitable for the childs true(p)ty staying overnight claiming alcohol misuse and the child coming home smelling of flowerpot. Ms C requires an interpreter and is pursuit a Co ntact hostel. As directed by the court I carried out an assessment of Ms Cs home, and also used mediation and counselling when brush with the parties to focus on on the childs best interests. The childs wishes and feelings were also ascertained. Family E babe E (14) currently resides with his father (Mr E). Mother (Ms E) is seeking a Residence Order. Father currently resides with the child in a family hostel provided by the Belfast Housing Executive, which Ms E is concerned about. Court direction stipulated me to ascertain the childs wishes and feelings about conformation with his father and contact with his set about. In addition to this I used mediation as an intervention to try to help the parties reach agreement about the child. I concluded my work with the family using a Person Centred round with Child E to determine if the plans implemented earlier in my practice were working, and what he would like to change when his case was due for review in court.Group raceMy group work consisted of working with teenage girls at a high school in North Belfast they were aged 14/15. I worked alongside the Health for Youth through Peer Education (HYPE) team who regularly visit schools to win knowledgeable health awareness. I co-facilitated this group and worked to educate the group about sexual health and relationships. This was to promote the need for the provision of accurate information to prevent teenage pregnancies and STIs, which have been highlighted as statistically higher(prenominal) in this area of Northern Ireland. Preparation of placementAs indicated above, to prepare for this placement, I began by growth my knowledge base around the court setting and private law, so that I could be accountable to the court and the Trust for my actions. Trevithick (2000162) claims to be accountable denotes professionalism by using knowledge, skills and qualifications, and adhering to values and ethics when serving a client. I began to line in to the placement s etting using knowledge, skills and values, with legislation such as The Children (NI) Order 1995, The Family Law Act (NI) 2001 and The Human Rights Act 1998.I tuned into the court setting and the rights of the service users who used it. oblige 3 of the Children (NI) Order 1995 claims that the court should act in the best interests of the child, and I was interested in comprehend if this occurred or if parental interests were considered higher. I tuned into the effects that divorce and separation have on children, and focused on gaining knowledge on how to minimize the negative impact this may have on children. The issue of contact in private law proceedings is a complex subject which raises questions of rights, responsibilities and ownership of children (Kroll, 2000 217). I was ab initio interested in researching if children knowing both parents were in their best interests, and why.Having had a placement with adults and learning disabilities last year I had reflected on the medi cal model versus the social model of disability, this placement was very different in that it would be the a legal context versus the social work role. I prepare this initially unenviable as the legal obligations of the court over-shadowed the social work process. Court directions dictated the aspects of work to be done, which I found difficult as service user needs were not necessarily established and met.AssessmentMs Cs assessment required me to meet with her, discuss issues regarding contact with her child, and investigate her animateness purlieu to determine if it was suitable for the child to have contact in. prior(prenominal) to Ms Cs assessment it was necessary for me to tune in to contact disputes between parents. I recognised that there is signifi jackpott resentment with both parties, but that having contact with both parents is in the childs best interests to promote for attachment, identity and positive relationships. To enlightened Ms Cs assessment I had received court directions, a referral and met with her legal advisor. I was at this term I was apprised that Ms C was Polish and required an interpreter. The Human Rights Act 1998 and the carry Relations Amendment Act 2000 both stipulate that an interpreter should be provided for health services to promote anti-discriminative practice and equal opportunities.I was then required to make a referral to the Trust interpreting service, and they informed me that they would make initial contact with Ms C. I found this unnerving, as the interpreter would be making commencement ceremony contact with the service user, and I would have liked the opportunity to explain my role. Having carried out previous assessments, I knew that communication was essential for the assessment and central to the process of gathering information and empowering service users (Watson and West, 2006), therefore to not be able to make initial contact with a service user I found to be restrictive and stressful. On initial contact with Ms C (and the interpreter) communication was difficult to establish. I found that by communicating through an interpreter I was limited in gathering information. I found it difficult to concentrate on Ms C, especially observing body language and smelling of voice instead I focused on the interpreter and actively listening to her. Ms C came across as frustrated and dis considerd, showing signs of closed body language. I felt empathetic to Ms C because of the court process she was involved in, and the fact that she had to go to court to gain contact with her child. I felt the initial clashing with Ms C was not as successful as I had hoped, I was not able to discuss the issues affecting her, and unable to establish an effective working relationship due to the barrier on an interpreter. I left the meeting feeling deskilled and questioning my practice. On reflection, I should have provided more time to Ms C due to the language obstacle and gathered more information on her issues. I should have focused on Ms C and not the interpreter, and used the interpreter more effectively to establish a relationship. For future learning I will endeavour to use these reflections.The next part of Ms Cs assessment was her home assessment. I was initially unwilling to carry out a home assessment, as I had no previous experience, and did not know what was classed as an unsafe environment for children. I began set in and identified that a home assessment required strong observational skills for child protection concerns. I also discussed the home assessment with my practice teacher and on site supervisor for aspects I should be concerned about within the home. It was indicated that a safe environment for a child did not have to be overly clean, just safe considering where the child sleeps, fire hazards, is there evidence of drug or alcohol use, or smelling of smoke (as Mr C alleges). On entering Ms Cs home, as the interpreter had not arrived yet, I was indisposed to try and converse with Ms C. Ms C spoke limited English, and I did not want to confuse or alarm her by trying to discuss the case issues. However, I did try to use body language and facial expressions to reach for feelings and try to build a rapport by postulation general questions about weather and work etc. I feel this helped our relationship, and helped me empathise about how difficult it must be to not be able to communicate effectively. By the time the interpreter had arrived I felt more at ease with Ms C, and addressed her (as opposed to the interpreter) with non-verbal cues such as sagging and body language. I felt more comfortable talking with Ms C, I felt more able to understand her frustrations at the court process, her ex-partner and his allegations.Prior to the assessment of the home I had gained stereotypical perceptions about Ms Cs home. I thought that the house, as it was in a working class area, would be unclean and neglected. However, the assessment of the home, us ing observational skills, indicated no child protection concerns, a clean environment for a child, and Mr Cs allegations unfounded. On reflection of my perceptions I feel I was oppressive to Ms C having been so judgemental, and I felt guilty about my opinions having been class discriminatory. Throughout the assessment with Ms C I found that by using an interpreter Ms C was able to stay informed and in control over her situation (Watson and West, 2006). I feel that by working with Ms C has helped my challenge my future practice with individuals who are non-English speakers. It will help me consider the needs of the service user, before judging them solely on language or their country of origin to provide equal opportunities. I now feel interpreters are required for a balance of power between the worker and service user, and promote anti-discriminatory practice.PlanningAccording to Parker and Bradley (2008 72) Planning as part of the social work process is a method of continually revi ewing and assessing the needs of all individual service users. It is based upon the assessment and identifies what needs to be done and what the outcome may be if it is completed. Prior to the beginning of placement I had limited experience of planning, or group work. It was important for me understand the facilitation and communication skills needed for successful group work, and help to develop my understanding of group dynamics, group control, and peer pressure for this age group.The key purpose of planning the group was to enable the young spate to develop their knowledge and skills to be able to make informed decisions and choices about personal relationships and sexual health. I began preparing for the planning stage of the social work process by meeting with the HYPE team and researching their work. I was interested in the sexual health training for young people at school, as my own experience at school showed that the information was often limited, and I was evoke in findi ng out if it had been challenged.I then began by tuning in to how I cherished to proceed through the planning process, and researching the topics of the different sessions as I considered I had limited knowledge on sexual health awareness. As I had to plan every week separately it was important to tune in to each and use knowledge, such as group work skills to inform my practice.During initial sessions I noted how group members were quiet and withdrawn, this was important to note as the subject of sexual relationships may have been embarrassing for them to discuss. I too felt uncomfortable discussing the material, as I had limited understanding of sexual health, but it was important for the group to overcome these anxieties and work through them together. I identified that ice respite techniques were required to facilitate trust and partnership.As the sessions progressed, one of the main challenges found was that peer influence was a major issue, with some of the participants cont rolling other quieter members. I felt it was necessary to include all members and back up participation using games. However, it was important not to push individuals when they became uncomfortable, as this could cause them to withdraw and disengage, disempowering them. Another challenge was that despite time management of the sessions, inevitably there had to be flexibility. Some of the group monopolised more time than others and it was necessary to be able to alter the plans according to time restraints.I also needed to be aware of my own values when planning sexual health awareness training, as it is still regarded as a controversial issue, especially in Catholic schools with teenagers (www.famyouth.org.uk). I considered sexual health awareness to be a great benefit in schools, but obviously due to religious considerations many Catholic schools continue simply to teach abstinence as the only form of contraception. This was important to consider as the group was facilitated in a Catholic school and many of the members or their teachers could have had religious views and opinions on the sessions, creating tension or animosity. Reflecting on this parental consent had been provided for the group, but the group itself were required to take part during a free period. I consider this to be an ethical dilemma as the childrens views werent regarded as exceedingly as their parents. If undertaking this group in future, I feel it would be necessary to ask the group if they wish to take part, and give the opportunity to withdraw promoting anti-oppressive practice.InterventionPrior to this practice placement I had limited experience using intervention methods. My previous placement focused on task centred work with service users, but in the court childrens service this could not be facilitated due to the time restrictions of the court. I had also previously used Rogerian person centred counselling which I found I could use some of the theory and apply it to this setti ng. After gathering a range of information from the court referral, C1 and other professionals, I began to tune in to Es case. I had been directed by the court to ascertain his wishes and feelings in regards to residence and contact arrangements, and mediate between his parents to find agreement about the childs residence. As Child E is fourteen, I felt it was necessary to research levels of development for this age group and understand, according to psychologists, what level Child E would be at emotionally, physically and psychologically. I found that Child E should be at a level of becoming more independent, having his own values, and being able to make informed choices.One of the well-nigh important issues, through mediation, was intriguing my own values and becoming aware of my own stereotypical views on adults who have separated, and the effects on their children. I had to challenge the idea that Child E just wanted to reside with his father as he was the less disciplined pa rent, or that Child E would well-nigh likely be playing his parents off against each other to get his own way. However, by challenging these views, and working with the parties through mediation, I came to realise that E had strong views about living with his father and had a stronger attachment to him. By reflecting on my values I realised that it was oppressive to consider the child as manipulating and could have affected my work with him.I found that having to be a neutral third fellowship in mediation was difficult, I found myself having a role as a witness, a reader and a peacekeeper trying to find common ground. Despite this I feel a third side was necessary to help the parties work through issues. I found the most difficult aspect of this role to be impartiality as I found myself empathizing more with the mother (as the child refused to live with her). However, I also understood the childs reasons behind his decision.During mediation, and in court, I also challenged my jud gements on gender and the notion that the mother is the nurturer or primary feather care giver in the home (Posada and Jacobs, 2001). The child clearly stated that he wanted to reside with his father, and when using questioning skills to probe about this, he claimed he had a stronger coalition with his father, and that his mother was continually ridiculing him. I found myself having to alter my views about attachment and mother being the primary care giver and focus on what the child wants.As the intervention progressed I used family mediation session to work through issues. I found that effective communication was principal in ascertaining Child Es wishes and feelings, and helping the parties consider his views, as opposed to their own relationship incriminations. This not only charge E by promoting partnership, but also gave him the knowledge that the court would be considering the information he provided. Within the meeting I felt I could have paced the meeting better and made better use of silences with E, as I dominated the conversation.I consider mediation to be successful as it helped the parties focus on the needs of the child, and helped them realise that they had a childs feelings to consider instead of the adversarial relationship built from court.ReviewPrior to the review process I had experience of carrying out person centred reviews (PCR) through my previous practice placement. I had previous training on PCRs and found them to be more effective than traditional reviews, due to the service user involvement. A PCR is an example of a person centred approach and the information from a review can be the foundation of a person centred plan (Bailey et al., 2009).Within the family proceedings court the purpose of reviews are to reassess interim plans, and either change them, or confirm they are working for the child(ren). In Child Es case a review was necessary to indicate if living with his father was working, and to discuss if he wanted to change an ything about his interim plans, which were introduced three months earlier. Within the court childrens team a review is fundamental to consider what is in the childs best interests, assess what is working and what is not working, and how to progress (considering the childs wishes and feelings). Child centred preparative work with Child E was fundamental to the review success as it established what was important to him (Smull and Sanderson, 2005). Reflecting on my person centred work last year I recognised that it was important to have preceding(prenominal) work with Child E as it promoted choice and options to explore. I had also recognised that the information gathered from the preparatory work could be the foundations of the review itself, especially if Child E felt embarrassed or incertain speaking out in front of his family on the day of the review (Smull and Sanderson, 2005)I conducted the review with Child E and his parents present, but reflecting on this it could also have been useful including his school teacher or other friends to have a holistic approach. Throughout the review I feel I was able to engage the participants successfully using goals to focus on, and we were able to create a person centred plan for Child E. During the readying for the review Child E had expressed that he felt he was having too much contact with his mother, and would like to limit this, he also expressed that this was an awkward subject to discuss with his mother present. I identified this in the review as child E did not wish to. I used skills such as facilitation and communication to show that Child E felt strongly about this issue, and both parents claimed they understood his view point. The review was also useful in presenting the information in court, as the child could not be present and I could advocate on his behalf.On reflection of Child Es review I feel it was a successful measure to determine what was working and not working since plans were implemented from the last court date. I had confidence in facilitating the review, but I did feel I perhaps dominated the conversation as both parents were hostile towards each other, and Child E was shy and unassertive about expressing his feelings. During future reviews I will endeavour to promote communication between parties, while empowering of the child. I will use better use of silences and encourage active involvement.ConclusionNo matter how skilled, experienced or effective we are, there are, of course, always lessons to be learned, improvements to be made and benefits to be gained from reflecting on our practice (Thompson, 2005 146)I feel this PLO has provided me with learning opportunities and identified my learning needs. It has encouraged me to reflect on my knowledge, skills and values and ensured that I used my reflections to learn from my practice.At the beginning of placement I was concerned I would oppress the service users by having limited understanding of the court process, an d unable to work effectively as a result. However, through training, help from my practice teacher and knowledge, I soon realised that the placement was about providing support, not being an expert. I feel I was able to establish a balance of the legal requirements of court and social work role, which has contributed to my learning experience and future knowledge.As my placement progressed I used tuning in and evaluations to analyse my practice, and use them to learn from. My placement has enabled me to improve my court report writing skills, presentations skills and legislation knowledge, which I consider to be invaluable for the future. In terms of future professional development, I will endeavour to challenge my stereotypical assumptions about service users, I will seek advice and guidance from more experienced members of staff, and I will use knowledge and theory to inform my practice prior to meeting service users.Future learning requires me to continue to develop skills in wor king with children, to use silence as a skill, as listen actively to what the service user wants. Having an opportunity to work within the court system has been invaluable, but I would also like the opportunity to have more experience working with children to enhance my knowledge, skills and values further.References Bailey, G., Sanderson, H., Sweeney, C. and Heaney, B. (2008) Person Centred Reviews in Adult Services. Valuing People Support Team. Kroll, B. (2000) Milk Bottle, Messenger, Monitor, Spy Childrens Experiences of Contact. Child Care in Practice 6 3 Parker, J., and Bradley, G. (2003) Social Work Practice Assessment, Planning, Intervention and Review. nurture Matters Ltd. Posada, G and Jacobs, A. (2001) Child-mother attachment relationships and culture. American Psychologist. 56(10), 821-822. Schn, D. (1987) Educating the Reflective Practitioner. San Francisco Jossey-Bass. Smull, M and Sanderson, H. (2005) Essential Lifestyle Planning for Everyone. The USA skill Community Thompson, N. (2005) Understanding Social Work Preparing for Practice. Basingstoke Palgrave Macmillan Trevithick, P. (2005) Social Work Skills A Practice Handbook (2nd Ed). Buckingham dedicate University Press. Watson, D and West, J (2006) Social Work Process and Practice Approaches, Knowledge and Skills. Basingstoke Palgrave Macmillan Williams, P (2006) Social Work with People with Learning Disabilities. Learning Matters LtdWebpages http//www.famyouth.org.uk/pdfs/CondomControversy.pdf accessed 24/4/10