Social Work - Professional Judgement & Decision Making

This session explores how we intuitively and experientially make decisions and what influences decision-making as a foundation for understanding how to make decisions as a professional. A particular anxiety for frontline practitioners is the assessment of risk, particularly in the current challenging times, when there may be less options for extended assessment, interventions, and/or monitoring. Whilst there are no easy answers to this dilemma, this session provides some frameworks for conceptualising and assessing risks; ideas to consider for triangulating information effectively, an exploration of the implications of undertaking risk assessment and making professional and defensible decisions in practice. This session is an opportunity for participants to share ideas and experiences from their own practice and engage in valuable peer support which can increase professional confidence and resilience. The course will explore the impact of our own values, bias, and beliefs on understanding, assessing and making professional judgements and decisions in relation to the management of risk including an exploration of whether this makes our practice risk adverse or conversely prompts unsafe risk-taking. The principles of safe accountable positive risk-taking will be explored. Recording decision-making around risk will also be covered. The course will provide participants with practical models and tips for ensuring assessments are concise and easy to follow whilst still containing the necessary depth for complex decision making and support planning within the social care legislative and policy frameworks.