·How do health and social care agencies work together effectively to deliver services collaboratively?
· What challenges do service providers face when working in partnership with service users?
·What political, ethical and philosophical issues impact on partnership working?

This practical and accessible key text examines the nature and impact of collaboration between different professional and voluntary groups working together to deliver services.

The first section explores partnership in terms of what partnerships are, politics, diversity, user perspectives, rurality and ethics. In section two, authors draw upon their expertise to raise key questions, and use case studies to demonstrate the challenges of working in partnership in areas where collaboration is a crucial to effective practice. This includes:

·Child protection
·Drug using parents
·Dementia
·Gypsy travellers
·Domestic violence
·Homelessness
·Mentally disordered offenders
·HIV
·Youth education
·Older people

Based around case studies that demonstrate partnership working, the book contains contributions from a service user as well as academics and practitioners from health, social care, criminal justice and the voluntary sector.

Effective Practice in Health and Social Care is recommended reading for managers, practitioners and students from a variety of human service agencies. It provides a good understanding of the issues, pitfalls and best practice that need to be addressed in order to work effectively in partnership with other agencies. A must read for anyone about to develop or join a multi-agency partnership.