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KMID : 1001320070310010343
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Social Welfare Policy
2007 Volume.31 No. 1 p.343 ~ p.368
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Partnership between Health and Social Care in the New Labour Government: Critical review of the policies in England
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Chon Yong-Ho
Kim Keun-Hong
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Abstract
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As the number of older people increases in the UK(particularly, in England), the coordinated services for them become proportionately more important in order to meet their various needs and provide for their well-being. There has been a long history of partnership between health and social care services in England. In particular, this trend has been more strongly emphasized by the New Labour Governments. The purpose of this paper is to critically review the partnership policies implemented by the New Labour Governments and make some suggestions about their future developments. The research method is based on literature review, using a wide range of literature such as government documents, journals and papers issued by stakeholders. In terms of the results of this research, compared with those of past governments, it is difficult to deny that the New Labour Governments have made the partnership between health and social care a key government policy. Owing to this drastic change, the fundamental structural boundaries between the two services began to be dismantled, which might lead to a degree of improvement in the conditions for partnerships. However, there are still lots of barriers to be removed. One of the most threatening factors in the structural and organisational levels of partnership is the shortage of funding in the NHS and local authorities. In addition, the long history of medical oriented targets and practices and the significant cultural differences among professionals have been notable barriers to the successful working of the partnership. To tackle these challenging issues, this article argues that some legal systems to curb the arbitrary withdrawal of joint funding should be put in place and that a complaints procedure should be instituted. In order to narrow the gap between professionals, systems, such as professionals’ forums and support services need to be available and actively backed by the government, as is the case in Northern Ireland. In addition, in order to restore the confidence of social workers in themselves and in their sphere of work, a systematic programme of training for them might be necessary.
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KEYWORD
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partnership, health, social care, older people, New Labour Government
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