The other invisible hand Le Grand, Julian
2008, 2007., 20090110, 2009, 2007, 2007-01-01, 20070101
eBook, Book
How can we ensure high-quality public services such as health care and education? Governments spend huge amounts of public money on public services such as health, education, and social care, and yet ...the services that are actually delivered are often low quality, inefficiently run, unresponsive to their users, and inequitable in their distribution. In this book, Julian Le Grand argues that the best solution is to offer choice to users and to encourage competition among providers. Le Grand has just completed a period as policy advisor working within the British government at the highest levels, and from this he has gained evidence to support his earlier theoretical work and has experienced the political reality of putting public policy theory into practice. He examines four ways of delivering public services: trust; targets and performance management; "voice"; and choice and competition. He argues that, although all of these have their merits, in most situations policies that rely on extending choice and competition among providers have the most potential for delivering high-quality, efficient, responsive, and equitable services. But it is important that the relevant policies be appropriately designed, and this book provides a detailed discussion of the principal features that these policies should have in the context of health care and education. It concludes with a discussion of the politics of choice.
`This is an illuminating and topical study, which skilfully blends together theoretical and empirical analysis in search of the "citizen-consumer". It should become a key text for all with an ...interest in public service reform and the "choice" agenda, as well as consumerism and citizenship′ - Ruth Lister, Professor of Social Policy, University of Loughborough Political, popular and academic debates have swirled around the notion of the citizen as a consumer of public services, with public service reform increasingly geared towards a consumer society. This innovative book draws on original research with those people in the front-line of the reforms - staff, managers and users of public services - to explore their responses to this turn to consumerism. Creating Citizen-Consumers explores a range of theoretical, political, policy and practice issues that arise in the shift towards consumerism. It draws on recent controversies about choice to examine the tensions of modernising public services to meet the demands of a consumer society. The book offers a fresh and challenging understanding of the relationships between people and services, and argues for a model based on interdependence, respect and partnership rather than choice. This original book makes a distinctive contribution to debates about the future of public services. It will be of interest to those studying social policy, cultural studies, public administration and management across the social sciences, as well as for those working in public services. John Clarke is a Professor of Social Policy at the Open University. Janet Newman is a Professor of Social Policy at the Open University. Nick Smith is a Research Officer in the Personal Social Services Research Unit at the University of Kent. Elizabeth Vidler is a Project Officer in the Faculty of Social Sciences at the Open University.
Louise Westmarland is a Lecturer in Criminology at the Open University.
Many hospital emergency departments are overcrowded and short-staffed, with a limited number of available hospital beds. It is increasingly hard for emergency departments and their staff to provide ...the necessary level of care for medical patients. Caring for people with psychiatric disabilities raises different issues and calls on different skills. In Emergency Department Treatment of the Psychiatric Patient, the author uses research, surveys, and statutory and litigation materials to examine problems with emergency department care for clients with psychiatric disorders. She relies on interviews with emergency department nurses, doctors and psychiatrists, as well as surveys of people with psychiatric disabilities in order to present the perspectives of both the individuals seeking treatment, and those providing it. This book explores the structural pressures on emergency departments and identifies the burdens and conflicts that undermine their efforts to provide compassionate care to people in psychiatric crisis. In addition to presenting a new analysis of the source of these problems, the author also suggests alternatives to emergency department treatment for people in psychiatric crisis. Moreover, she proposes standards for treatment of these individuals when they do inevitably end up in a hospital emergency department.
In November 2017, the The Forum on Promoting Children's Cognitive, Affective, and Behavioral Health, in collaboration with the Roundtable on the Promotion of Health Equity, convened a workshop on ...promoting children's behavioral health equity. The workshop used a socio-ecological developmental model to explore health equity of children and families, including those with complex needs and chronic conditions. Particular attention was paid to challenges experienced by children and families in both rural and urban contexts, to include but not limited to poverty, individual and institutional racism, low-resourced communities, and hindered access to educational and health care services. Workshop participants also engaged in solution-oriented discussions of initiatives, policies, and programs that aim to improve social determinants of health, opportunities for behavioral health promotion, and access to quality services that address the behavioral health of all children and families. This publication summarizes the presentations and discussion of the event.
Rural Women's Sexuality, Reproductive Health, and Illiteracy examines the intimate lives of women in the developing world, their sexuality, and views on family planning and gender inequality. ...Providing insights on cultural traditions and understanding of modern medicine, it is essential for public health and anthropology scholars and practitioners.
Zones of social abandonment are emerging everywhere in Brazil’s big cities—places like Vita, where the unwanted, the mentally ill, the sick, and the homeless are left to die. This haunting, ...unforgettable story centers on a young woman named Catarina, increasingly paralyzed and said to be mad, living out her time at Vita. Anthropologist João Biehl leads a detective-like journey to know Catarina; to unravel the cryptic, poetic words that are part of the “dictionary” she is compiling; and to trace the complex network of family, medicine, state, and economy in which her abandonment and pathology took form. An instant classic, Vita has been widely acclaimed for its bold fieldwork, theoretical innovation, and literary force. Reflecting on how Catarina’s life story continues, this updated edition offers the reader a powerful new afterword and gripping new photographs following Biehl and Eskerod’s return to Vita. Anthropology at its finest, Vita is essential reading for anyone who is grappling with how to understand the conditions of life, thought, and ethics in the contemporary world.
The Routledge Handbook of Service Research Insights and Ideas offers authoritative coverage of current scholarship in the expanding discipline of service research.
Original chapters from the world's ...leading specialists in the discipline explore foundations and innovations in services, highlighting important issues relating to service providers, customers, and service design. The volume goes beyond previous publications by drawing together material from different functional areas, including marketing, human resource management, and service process design and operations. These topics are important in helping readers become knowledgeable about how different functional areas interact to create a successful customer experience.
This book is ideal as a first port of call for postgraduate students desiring to get up to speed quickly in the services discipline. It is also a must-read for academics new to services who want to access cutting-edge research.
As the occupational therapy profession concerns itself with how people occupy their time during daily life, it is critical for occupational therapists who serve children to understand how to apply ...their knowledge and skills within the complex and varied environments of the community.
A core text for over 10 years,
Best Practice Occupational Therapy for Children and Families in Community Settings, Second Edition
by Dr. Winnie Dunn provides a clear insight into how to conceive, design, implement, and evaluate services that reflect core principles.
Best Practice Occupational Therapy for Children and Families in Community Settings, Second Edition
provides the most current information about providing services within community settings, with material addressing early intervention, early childhood, school-age services, and transitions.
The context of this text is rooted in best practice principles from interdisciplinary literature and illustrates how occupational therapy professionals implement those principles in their everyday practices.
New Features of the Second Edition:
Updated assessments, evidence, and appendices
Case studies that illustrate the implementation of ideas in a practice situation
Worksheets that outline each step in the occupational therapy process from what to include to how to provide rationale for team members, families, and consumers
Tables and inserts that summarize key points
Information regarding state and federal legislation to guide the occupational therapists in how to negotiate for best practice services within parameters of regulations
Integrated throughout the text is the American Occupational Therapy Association's Occupational Therapy Practice Framework
Additional on-line resources that are available with new book purchases
Instructors in educational settings can visit www.efacultylounge.com for additional material to be used for teaching in the classroom.
Best Practice Occupational Therapy for Children and Families in Community Settings, Second Edition
contains many suggestions about how to practice the skills needed for evidence-based practice, making this the perfect resource for occupational therapy students, faculty, and practitioners who serve children and families.
Worldwide, there has been a growth in service user involvement in education and research in recent years. This handbook is the first book which identifies what is happening in different regions of ...the world to provide different countries and client groups with the opportunity to learn from each other.
The book is divided into five sections: Section One examines service user involvement in context exploring theoretical issues which underpin service user involvement. In Section Two we focus on the state of service user involvement in human services education and research across the globe including examples of innovative practice, but also identifying examples of where it is not happening and why. Section Three offers more detailed examination of such involvement in a wide range of professional education learning settings. Section Four focuses on the involvement of service users in research involving a wide range of service user groups and situations. Lastly, Section Five explores future challenges for education and research to ensure involvement remains meaningful.
The book includes forty-eight chapters, including seventeen case-studies, from all regions of the world, this is the first book to both highlight the subject’s methodological and theoretical issues and give practical examples in education and research for those wishing to engage in this field.
It will be of interest to all service users, scholars and students of social work, nursing, occupational therapy, and other human service subjects.
The chapter authors address life transitions and the university student experience, as well as the challenges of caring for university students with mental health issues. The book has positive ...strategies, including ways to foster mental health for distinct university student populations.
