Publications from ODSW Social Insights: Letters by DSW (Vol 2) | Seite 48

Working with Various Client Groups
impact their development. Severe trauma that are prolonged, repeated
or unrelieved by a caring adult, can potentially impact brain structure and
function.

Practical ways of working together to support
parents
How can community partners and social service practitioners work
collaboratively to support families? It begins with building effective
partnerships. Such a partnership requires a comm on understanding of the
shared outcome that both parties want, as well as the gaps, and methods
to arrive at the outcome. It requires a relationship of trust and a clear
understanding of how to work together based on the various roles and
responsibilities.
Linking families to help: Care giving, challenging behaviours and other
circumstances can cause family stress. Volunteers can connect families to
support that can help them deal with these issues. To do this appropriately,
volunteers and community groups need to be familiar with community
resources and help agencies. It is useful to ask questions not just about
the child’s health, but also about the parent’s experience and how they are
coping with health or developmental issues that are coming up. Where
appropriate, it is good to share information and materials about child
development and parenting as part of anticipatory guidance for parents.
When connecting families with help, it is necessary to involve the families
by asking their views about how they might want to be linked up and
discuss the process instead of assuming that they are comfortable with
the approach. As much as possible, avoid making families feel that their
family space is violated without their permission. The families should be
encouraged to accept support and help for themselves and the children.
While sharing information with families is helpful, we should exercise care
in how this is done. Having materials such as brochures, items and practical
gifts can help to pave the way to constructively explaining the help that the
families require. In making referrals, it is necessary to take extra care when it
is a referral to child protection services.
Looking for signs of distress: In some cases, a child may directly report
having seen or experienced violence or other traumatic experiences. In other
cases, a child may show characteristics that come from exposure to trauma
such as developmental regression, changes in behaviour at home or school,
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