Adults with cystic fibrosis and barriers to employment

Existing research on cystic fibrosis (CF) tends to view CF as a long‐term medical condition of childhood, thus reinforcing the mistaken view that few children with CF survive into adulthood. Despite the fact that people with CF are increasingly living into older age there has been little research into the employment of adults with CF. Those studies which have been undertaken portray CF as a ‘serious illness’ which causes employment problems. In contrast, this paper discusses findings from a study which explored the employment experiences of adults with CF from a social model perspective. The findings reveal barriers to employment which are similar to those experienced by other disabled people, as well as barriers related to the ‘impairment effects’ of CF. The authors conclude that adults with CF have valuable perspectives to contribute to social model analysis and the development of employment‐related policy solutions.     

Career transition as identity learning: an autoethnographic understanding of human resource development

This paper examines the phenomenon of career transitions in terms of learning using an autoethnographic story of our own career moves. In the contemporary world of globalized flexible employment, inter-organizational career moves are increasingly prevalent and the learning associated with such transitions needs to be better understood within human resource development (HRD). We show that the learning required in career transitions extends beyond the acquisition of new knowledge and the development of new skills to the appropriation of new identities. We overview identity theorizing and, adopting a social constructionist perspective, explain the concept of identity work to understand the nature of identity learning in career transitions. We then reflexively examine our autoethnographic methodology, proceed to tell the story of our career transitions, and then interpret this story in terms of identity learning. Conclusions are drawn showing how the learning associated with career transitions involves conscious and unconscious identity work to release an established way of being, cultivate a new and desired way of being, and to cope with the existential anxieties associated with transition. Significant implications for international HRD scholarship, policy, and practice are proposed.     

Reimagining social work case studies: a social work—creative writing collaboration

This paper describes a joint social work and creative writing project which analysed case studies from textbooks on reading lists for the Bachelor of Social Work course at Edith Cowan University. The textbook case studies were analysed from the perspectives of both social work and literary craft and it was found that they presented simplified scenarios which were limited in terms of diversity and rarely portrayed depth or complexity. The case studies were also often bereft of information about social workers’ or service users’ human qualities and frequently portrayed service users in terms of the problems they presented to the social worker. The authors argue that depicting social workers and service users in this way can create the impression that social work is a distanced procedural activity and can also serve to distance service users’ lives and experiences from social work students. Drawing on research in creative writing craft, as well as analysis of the textbook case studies, principles for writing engaging text-book case studies were developed and the paper concludes by arguing for the use of these principles when crafting social work case studies.     

Collaborative care for individuals with bipolar disorder or schizophrenia and co-occurring physical health conditions: A systematic review

While rates of chronic physical health conditions are increasing for the general population, individuals with severe mental illness are at greater risk. Co-occurring mental and physical health conditions are associated with poor health care utilization, socioeconomic, and patient-reported health status outcomes. This study used systematic review procedures to investigate the effectiveness of collaborative care models for improving the health of adults with bipolar disorder or schizophrenia and co-occurring chronic physical health conditions. Six studies met inclusion criteria, and included outcomes related to quality of life, physical health, and mental health. Collective and study-level results are reported and discussed, including implications for social work practice and research.     

Dealing with Conflict in Local Planning: Reflections from Australian Planners

Planners routinely deal with issues involving conflict, regularly engaging with people who may be upset, angry and at times aggressive. Yet planners are not conflict resolution specialists and their role is not necessarily to act as mediator. The level of conflict they experience can be stressful and challenging. This paper reports on interviews conducted with local government planners in Melbourne, Australia, in which they discuss their experience with conflicts and reflect on their preparation for this challenging aspect of their profession. The results indicate the need for more emphasis on training in a range of personal and professional behaviours within planning education.     

Why People Leave Community Service Organizations: A Mixed Methods Study

VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations - Despite the benefits of volunteering to the individual, organization and community, the retention of volunteers within...