Jim Campbell & Gavin Davidson 
Post-Qualifying Mental Health Social Work Practice 

Social workers and other professionals working in the area of mental health often face complex and difficult practice dilemmas shaped by increasingly demanding policy and legal contexts across the UK.

Jim Campbell and Gavin Davidson focus on the post-qualifying role played by mental health social workers in this book. The authors draw on theoretical and research perspectives on the subject, before outlining how professionals can achieve best practice.

Topics covered include:

‘ Models of mental health and illness

‘ Discrimination and social exclusion

‘ Addressing service user needs

‘ Carer perspectives

‘ Working with individuals, families and communities

The chapters are accompanied by exercises, which encourage readers to critically reflect on their own professional and personal experiences. Case studies are also included, so that students can reappraise the knowledge they have learned in the text.

The book will be essential reading for social work practitioners taking postgraduate courses in mental health and for those training to become Approved Mental Health Professionals.

Table of Content

Introduction: Mental Health Social Work in the UK – Locating Policy, Practice and Post-Qualifying Education

Policy and Agency Contexts

The Legal Context

Models of Mental Health and Illness

Addressing Discrimination

Listening to Service-Users′ Needs

Listening to Carers′ Needs

Working with Individuals

Working with Families

Working with Communities

Multi-Disciplinary Working

The Role of the Approved Mental Health Professional

Conclusion: Looking to the Future

About the author

Gavin is a Professor of Social Care at Queen’s University Belfast. He is a registered social worker and worked in mental health services before moving to Queen’s. His research is mainly in the area of mental health, specifically: the effectiveness of mental health services; the social determinants of mental health; human rights and mental health/mental capacity legislation; and the associations between trauma and mental health.