Working With Risk : Skills for Contemporary Social Work / Hazel Kemshall.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Assessing and managing risk is a daily challenge for social workers. Working with risk can be anxiety provoking and demanding, requiring great skill and high levels of confidence. In these complex situations, social workers have to work hard to get the balance right.

This innovative book focuses on the development and use of skills for work with risk. Using a range of case studies, examples and reflective exercises, the authors examine the key skills required to work effectively with risk. Various chapters focus on assessment skills, gathering and evaluation of information, decision-making challenges, and ethical issues. Recognising the difficulties presented in the context of busy statutory work, there is a strong focus on practical skills and tips for improving risk management plans. The book also pays careful attention to the emotional impact of working with risk, with a final chapter on the management of self in the challenging and sometimes distressing world of social work.

Written in a reader-friendly, accessible style, the book will be essential reading for students and staff across a range of social work settings, including community care, adult services, child protection and mental health.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• Figures and Activity Boxes (p. vi)
• Acknowledgements (p. ix)
• 1 Understanding Risk (p. 1)
• 2 Skills for Risk Assessment (p. 9)
• 3 The Art of Decision Making (p. 43)
• 4 Risk Planning and Management (p. 71)
• 5 Risk and Ethics (p. 101)
• 6 Review and Evaluation of Risk (p. 121)
• 7 Managing Self in the Organizational Context (p. 146)
• Conclusion (p. 166)
• References (p. 173)
• Index (p. 188)

Author notes provided by Syndetics