Essential Skills of Social Work Practice: Assessment, Intervention, and Evaluation

Essential Skills of Social Work Practice presents the basics of effective social work practice and helps students develop competence in assessment, intervention, and evaluation. Its broad coverage explores the counseling, case management, and research skills necessary to implement evidence-based practice in contemporary social work. A stand-out feature of this book is the innovative use of its appendices-particularly the comprehensive service plan that is incorporated throughout the text. The book incorporates a number of extensive case example with a step-by-step treatment plan illustrating the application of knowledge and skills discussed within the case situation.

Professor O'Hare has been a leader in the field of evidence-based practice and uses his experience to craft this second edition of Essential Skills. The book is DSM-5 ready, and illustrates the importance of using research to inform practice, while also using practice experiences to contribute to the development of evidence-based resources. This is the book that will serve as a foundational practice text for students that also functions as a bridge to learning advanced social work practices.

Thomas O'Hare (MSW, PhD, Rutgers University) is associate professor of social work at Boston College. He has been a clinical social worker in both the public and private sectors and has worked as a quality assurance and research/evaluation consultant for several mental health agencies. He has published widely on co-occurring mental health and substance abuse problems in young adults and on trauma and substance abuse in people with serious mental illnesses. He has also developed and published scales for social work assessment and measurement of practice skills.