JOURNAL
ISSUE 2
1999/2000
table
of contents
|
abstracts
Collaboration
and Case Management in Social Services
Mari-Anne Zahl
ABSTRACT
Cooperation and coordination are politically correct terms.
They can occur at either organizational or case levels. An
example of a public social service cluster surrounding nineteen
year old women with multiple agencies illustrates the difficulty
of case coordination. The involvement of a number of workers
is, in itself, neither effective nor a guarantee of quality
care.
This paper is
based on a research project focusing on case problem definition,
cooperation, and coordination presented at Social Welfare
Departments. Definitions of the terms "cooperation, coordination
and collaboration" are overlapping, ambiguous, and context
related. However, they are frequently used in relation to
the helping professions, where they appear to be presented
both as ends and means. These taken-for-granted terms are
of theoretical interest to organizations, professionals, clients,
and their environments.
Copyright
for the I.U.C. / B.S.U. Journal of Social Work Theory and
Practice is owned by the Social Work Program, Department of
Social Relations and Services, Bemidji State University, Bemidji,
Minnesota, USA. One copy may be made (printed) for personal
use; teachers may make multiple copies for student use if
the copies are made available to students without charge.
Permission must be secured from the editors for sale of any
copies of articles or for any commercial use of the material
published in the Journal.
