Developing Professional Practice in Health and Social Care

Addressing the changing world of professionalism, this text combines theory, research and practice, using real case studies, to investigate the process of becoming professional. Mapping the journey from allied or associate practitioner positions through qualifying and into advanced practitioner status, it is a valuable companion for health and social care, social work and allied health students from the beginning of their studies.

Developing Professional Practice in Health and Social Care is an accessible text, including case studies, reflective exercises and activities, chapter aims and summaries and further reading boxes throughout. It covers:

• the context for professional practice, including historical perspectives, policy and discussion of relevant competencies and frameworks
• the concept of professionalism, exploring what it means to be a professional
• values and ethics underpinning professional practice
• professional identity development, including formation and changes in identity
• professional practice in complex environments, paying particular attention to working in organisations
• becoming a critical and globally aware practitioner
• the role of evidence and knowledge in professional practice
• working with supervision.

Maintaining a strong focus on the ethical dimensions of professional practice, this text emphasises how health and social care practitioners can contribute to social justice and challenge social exclusion.

Adam Barnard is a Senior Lecturer in Health and Social Care in the Department of Social Work and Health at Nottingham Trent University, UK. He has worked in higher education for over twenty years and runs the Professional Doctorate in Social Practice. He has taught across a range of undergraduate and postgraduate programmes and courses and teaches on the BA (H) Health and Social Care degree. His research interests are varied and include research into visual methodologies; enabling environments; the self in professional practice; pedagogies of reflection; and critical theory about professional practice. His publications include The Value Base of Social Work and Social Care (with Horner and Wild, 2008), which has been internationally translated; and the edited volume Key Themes in Health and Social Care (2012). He has conducted contract and evaluative research with local authority partners.