Skip Navigation

British Journal of Social Work 2004 34(8):1115-1132; doi:10.1093/bjsw/bch132
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in ISI Web of Science
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow Search for citing articles in:
ISI Web of Science (3)
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Taylor, A.
Right arrow Articles by Kroll, B.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

British Journal of Social Work Vol. 34 No. 8 © BASW Trading Ltd 2004 all rights reserved

Working with Parental Substance Misuse: Dilemmas for Practice

Andy Taylor and Brynna Kroll

Andy Taylor and Brynna Kroll are both Lecturers in the Department of Social Work at the University of Exeter.

Correspondence to Dr Brynna Kroll, Department of Social Work, University of Exeter, Richards Building, St. Luke’s Campus, Heavitree Road, Exeter EX1 2LU, UK. E-mail: brynna.kroll{at}plymouth.ac.uk

Summary

The impact of parental substance misuse on child welfare is now being increasingly recognized. Drug and alcohol problems feature in a substantial proportion of families where there are child-care concerns and raise issues about engagement, confidentiality, assessment and inter-agency practice. This article explores some of the dilemmas faced by social welfare professionals who work with substance misusing parents. Based on a qualitative analysis of 40 semi-structured interviews with a wide range of practitioners from both adult focused and child and family settings, in both the voluntary and statutory sector, a variety of emerging themes will be discussed and linked to those from other studies. The problems of working with denial, the tensions created by different agency objectives and protocols and the way in which children can often fall through gaps in services will be highlighted, as will the way in which some professionals have sought to resolve the dilemmas they encounter. This will then be used as a basis for beginning to look at constructive ways forward in relation to training, interprofessional and inter-agency communication and service delivery.

Keywords: Substance misuse, assessment, inter-agency practice


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 Br J Soc WorkHome page
H. Loughran, M. Hohman, and D. Finnegan
Predictors of Role Legitimacy and Role Adequacy of Social Workers Working with Substance-Using Clients
Br. J. Soc. Work, July 30, 2008; (2008) bcn106v1.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Br J Soc WorkHome page
C. Fraser, A. McIntyre, and M. Manby
Exploring the Impact of Parental Drug/Alcohol Problems on Children and Parents in a Midlands County in 2005/06
Br. J. Soc. Work, March 17, 2008; (2008) bcn016v1.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Br J Soc WorkHome page
J. Devaney
Secret Lives: Growing with Substance: Working with Children Who Live with Substance Misuse, * F. Harbin and M. Murphy (eds), * Lyme Regis, Russell House Publishing, 2006, pp. 146, {pound}16.00
Br. J. Soc. Work, April 1, 2007; 37(3): 577 - 579.
[Full Text] [PDF]


Disclaimer:
Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.