communication

The Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) commissioned Ipsos MORI to carry out a research programme with the following objectives: to establish whether the social care sector in England is ready to maximise the use of elearning in terms of technical and organisational infrastructure and in terms of the availability of e-learning content for social care; to provide an assessment of the current capacity of the social care sector as a whole to use and produce e-learning, in particular in internet-based learning, and to exploit its full potential in pursuit of improved services for users

Paper arguing that the management structure and culture of the NHS in England often acts as an impediment to innovation and the introduction of new ideas which may benefit patients and offering suggestions as to how this situation can be improved.

This resource examines the reasons for listening to children which includes that it acknowledges their right to be listened to and for their views and experiences to be taken seriously about matters that affect them. Listening can make a difference to our understanding of children’s priorities, interests and concerns and can make a difference to our understanding of how children feel about themselves. This resource highlights that listening is a vital part of establishing respectful relationships with the children we work with and that it is central to the learning process.

Podcast from the Faculty of Education Professorial Lecture, University of Strathclyde, 22/01/2009. Talk by Professor Catherine Mackenzie.

Guidance, consisting of nine separate modules, which aims to supply social care organisations with the tools and resources necessary to plan for and cope with the challenges posed by pandemic influenza.

Report presenting the findings of a survey which explored how much young people enjoy writing, what type of writing they engage in, how good they think they are at writing and what they think about writing.

This multimedia learning object provides an introduction to the "task-centered" model of social work intervention. This model was based on the work of Sigmund Freud and the psychoanalysts. Psychoanalytic social work emphasised relationship-focused intervention with the professional adopting the role of the 'expert'.

Paper looking at the types of conversations which take place between doctors and patients, particularly concerning diabetes and mental illness. It concludes that doctors are learning to talk and listen to ever more assertive patients and that improving the quality of conversations is vital to empowerment and innovation.

This BBC radio programme looks at how the number of people diagnosed with dementia in the UK has reached 700,000, and how, often close relatives step into the role of being the main carer.

Julie Heathcote is a trainer in reminiscence-based approaches for the Alzheimer’s Society which are proving to be successful in helping both carers and the cared for to spend more quality time together. Felicity Finch joins her with a group of carers at The Lowestoft and Waveney branch of the society where she ran a Reminiscence Activities session.

Summary report on the proposal to develop a training network in the North of Scotland. Such a network would facilitate joint working and provide mutual support on training and development issues. Consultation undertaken on behalf of the Scottish Social Services Learning Network North by Carol Smith.