An interdisciplinary framework for sustainable helping through cross-system collaboration This hands-on resource provides clear, practical guidance for supportive service professionals working in a home-based environment. Drawing on best practices from a range of disciplines, this book provides a clear map for dealing with the complex and often ambiguous situations that arise with individuals and families, with applications extending to supervision and organizational change. Readers gain the advice and insight of real-world frontline helpers, as well as those who receive care, highlighting new ways to approach the work and re-think previous conceptualizations of problems and strengths. Helping efforts are organized around a shared, forward-thinking vision that anticipates obstacles and draws on existing and potential supports in developing a collaborative plan of action.
The book begins with stories that illustrate core concepts and context, presenting a number of useful ideas that can reorient behavioral services while outlining a principle-based practice framework to help workers stay grounded and focused. Problems are addressed, and strength-based work is expanded into richer conversations about strengths in the context of intention and purpose, value and belief, hopes, dreams, and commitments. Topics include:
- Contextual guidance with helping maps
- Engaging people and re-thinking problems and strengths
- Dilemmas in home and community services
- Sustainable helping through collaboration and support
A strong collaboration between natural networks, communities, and trained professionals across systems creates an effective helping endeavor. Ensuring sustainability may involve promoting systems change, and building institutional supports for specific supervisory, management, and organizational practices. Collaborative Helping provides a framework for organizing these efforts into a coherent whole, serving the needs of supportive services workers across sectors.
Table of Contents:
Acknowledgments vii
Introduction xi
About the Authors xix
Chapter 1 Helping: What, How, and Why 1
Stories of Helping Relationships 1
Walking and Talking 8
Helping Activities—The What of Helping 9
Relational Connection—The How of Helping 12
Experience and Stories—The Why of Helping 14
Placing Collaborative Helping in a Broader Context 17
Moving Collaborative Helping into the Future 20
Chapter 2 Cornerstones of Collaborative Helping 23
Collaborative Helping as a Principle-Based Approach 23
Collaborative Helping and Relational Stance 26
Collaborative Helping and a Focus on Life Stories 33
Collaborative Helping and Inquiry 40
The Cornerstones in Plain English 46
Chapter 3 A Map to Guide Helping Efforts 49
Introducing Collaborative Helping Maps 50
The Collaborative Helping Map in Action 52
Organizing Vision and Preferred Directions in Life 53
Obstacles and Supports 58
The Plan 64
The Usefulness of a Map 68
Chapter 4 Collaborative Helping Maps in Different Contexts 69
Using Collaborative Helping Maps in Residential Programs 69
Using Collaborative Helping Maps to Enhance Conversations in Child Protective Services 78
Using Collaborative Helping Maps in the Changing World of Health Care 91
Current and Potential Uses for Collaborative Helping Maps 96
Chapter 5 Engaging People to Envision New Lives 99
Engagement—Who Are You and What Is Important to You? 99
Vision—Where Would You Like to Be Headed in Your Life? 102
Engagement Difficulties 108
Engaging a Youth with a No Problem Stance 111
Engaging a Woman with a No Control Stance 115
Difficulties Developing a Vision 118
Connecting to Build Desired Futures 123
Chapter 6 Rethinking Problems and Strengths 125
Rethinking Strengths and Needs 126
Conversations about Problems as Obstacles Separate from People 127
A Map for Externalizing Conversations about Problems 135
Conversations about Strengths as Intentional Practices of Living 139
A Map for Conversations about Strengths 142
Applications of Conversations about Strengths 144
New Conversations about Problems and Strengths 148
Chapter 7 Dilemmas in Home and Community Services 151
Concrete Help, Boundaries, and the Terrain of Home and Community Work 152
The Contribution of Family Partners to Collaborative Helping 159
Relational Stance and Advocacy Efforts 161
Power Dynamics in Working with the Larger Helping System 162
Dilemmas in Advocacy Efforts 166
Helping People More Effectively Advocate for Themselves 173
In the End, It’s Still Walking and Talking 174
Chapter 8 Sustainable Helping 177
Using Collaborative Helping Maps to Enhance Supervision 177
Building Institutional Structures that Support Collaboration 183
Building Organizational Cultures that Support Collaboration 190
A Brief Look Back 199
References 203
Index 209
About the Author :
WILLIAM MADSEN, PhD, is an internationally-renowned consultant in the fields of family therapy and social work. He is the author of Collaborative Therapy with Multi-Stressed Families, a social work text used widely by public agencies and graduate programs. In 2013, he was awarded the Distinguished Contribution to Family Therapy, Theory, and Practice award by the American Family Therapy Academy.
KEVIN GILLESPIE, MHSA, RN, is the Executive Director of Integrated Services and the founding director of Blue Sky Alliance of Appalachian Ohio. He has more than 30 years of experience combining direct service, system development, and administration. His work focuses on innovative service solutions for public service systems and in alliance with therapeutic, housing, and employment professionals.
