Rory Lynch - Social Work Practice with Older People

SAGE has been part of the global academic community since 1965, supporting high quality research and learning that transforms society and our understanding of individuals, groups and cultures. SAGE is the independent, innovative, natural home for authors, editors and societies who share our commitment and passion for the social sciences.

Find out more at: www.sagepublications.com

[A Positive Person-Centred Approach]

The structure of this book is very much driven by some of the radical changes that have taken place within community-based support, care management, the political context and more recent downturns within the economy of the United Kingdom. The book also sets out to explore and define the nature of modern social work training within the recent Professional Capabilities Framework for Social Work and the impact this has on training and service delivery. Just as importantly, the text seeks to focus on those ethical and value-driven aspects of working with older people. While the author would not support the view that values and ethics of themselves are under attack in the modern world, it is true that financial and resource stressors will impact on service delivery and how the needs of older people are met. Most of the chapters of the book will focus on these themes and a consideration of what it is to be an older person in the twenty-first century. This book will appear at a time when there are real concerns as to how older people, without adequate resources, will manage in areas of nutrition, heating and a wider social engagement with families and local communities. Students of Maslow (1987) may wonder what the wider implications for personhood and belonging are when the basics of human existence may be under threat for some individuals. The text is permeated throughout by case studies, exercises and questions to ponder.

The author has also attempted here to define the changing nature of the older person and focuses on this within the context of the transition of growing into older age with an emphasis on law and policy. This is as opposed to youthfulness, which is more readily grown out of. The chapter addresses how older people may become hidden in full view where expressed needs are denied or not acknowledged. Older people may become increasingly worried about their perceived lack of input into society. This is particularly at odds with those older people who are still working post-retirement as well as carrying out voluntary, caring and kinship roles. Lord Birchard, former head of the benefits agency, has not helped the current debate by suggesting that retired individuals should commit to community services to reduce the burden on the state, or have their state pensions reduced (Morris, 2012). A starting premise therefore for any consideration of social work with older people is that older people are not an adjunct to the state but are the state itself. When this politically driven premise is considered as a rational debate as opposed to a consideration of the lack of resources, then older people may have cause to worry. From a social policy perspective this has to be considered within the context of the UKs gross domestic product (GDP), which is one of the highest in Western Europe.

is concerned with values and ethics and how social work practice can remain professional and moral within what is considered the rightness of actions. These considerations may be at a time when resources are limited and practitioners may be forced to make decisions based on this premise. Essentially, this chapter is related to need and its resolution within a context of inclusivity and engagement. The chapter seeks to explore those wider dimensions of personal values as well as a consideration of that more philosophical aspect of what it is to be. The author suggests that without this consideration the needs of all vulnerable groups may not be met. This chapter also considers something of the tyranny of youth, although caution needs to be exercised here to ensure that youthfulness and older age are not seen as conflicting opposites. This is more related to a mutuality of respect and an acknowledgement of the psychological forces at work across the life course. These are not only stages that need to be worked through but hopefully in a collaborative way.