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BJSW Advance Access originally published online on February 21, 2008
British Journal of Social Work 2009 39(6):1101-1117; doi:10.1093/bjsw/bcm155
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© The Author 2008. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The British Association of Social Workers. All rights reserved.

editor's choice

What's in a Name: ‘Client’, ‘Patient’, ‘Customer’, ‘Consumer’, ‘Expert by Experience’, ‘Service User’—What's Next?

Hugh McLaughlin

Dr Hugh McLaughlin is Director of Social Work and Social Policy at the University of Salford he is also a member of the Salford Centre for Social Work Research. Prior to moving into academia, he practised social work for twenty-two years, both as a practitioner and as a senior manager.

Correspondence to Dr Hugh McLaughlin, Director of Social Work and Social Policy, University of Salford, Salford M6 6PU, UK. Email: h.mclaughlin{at}salford.ac.uk


  Abstract

This article challenges the terms we use to describe the relationship between those who assess and commission services and those who are the recipient of those services. In particular, the article identifies the different terms that have been used in British social work, including ‘client’, ‘customer’, ‘consumer’, ‘service user’ and ‘expert by experience’, highlighting their assumptive worlds and the relationships the terms suggest and signify. Service user (the most popular term at present) is highlighted and critically analysed and found to be increasingly problematic and unable to describe the complexities of the service–recipient relationship. Alternative terms are discussed and found wanting, whilst a possible way forward is suggested to avoid the negative connotations of any one particular term.

Keywords: Service user, consumer, customer, expert by experience


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