Publications from ODSW Social Insights: Letters by DSW (Vol 1) | Page 32

Integration 1

For some issues, a very formally integrated approach between health and
social care and/or between different tiers of the health service might be
required. In other situations, a broader relationship between social care and
a person’s accommodation might be best. For some issues, a single agency
such as the Agency for Integrated Care might be best placed to respond.

Working Towards Service Integration For Families
What does service integration look like for families who often have more than
one service provider (whether they are from the same agency or different
ones)? The challenge in such situations is when there could be contradictory
information arising from a lack of service integration, including contradictory
advice and unrealistic expectations from individual professionals.
A therapist, for example, often say that it’s really what you do at home that
matters, so there is usually ‘homework’ to do with a child between therapy
sessions. This means that sometimes there is speech therapy, physiotherapy
and occupational therapy homework to do. Each therapist may not be
aware of what the other has said. These homework are usually given without
being aware of everything else that an adult is dealing with at home such
as medication, bed-wetting, other appointments, let alone the needs of the
rest of the family. The only person who knows it all is the parent or adult who
usually has to process it all somehow.
Professionals can significantly assist families by sharing information with each
other, with the family’s permission. Clearly, efforts to improve communication
and coordination can significantly improve service quality and effectiveness.
So what can help in service integration which requires both skills and good
processes? Here are some suggestions:
• everyone involved understands each other’s roles, skills, area of expertise
and practice approaches

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