Public policy and the context of collaboration; why collaboration in health and welfare - its place in ideology, models of care and social theory; the dangers of collaboration; divisions and differences in health and social care; a conceptual framework for collaboration in practice and education; values in collaboration.
Presenting ideas drawn from a critical analysis of the concept of collaboration, the author argues that interprofessional and interagency collaboration should be explicitly purposeful, structurally supported, and specifically skilled. The need for a framework to evaluate projects, design curricula and develop reflective practice is examined; and the author also raises questions about popular emphases, such as the search for common core skills and the pursuit of a generic practitioner.