Case Study: Morris and Jenny Brown - Multi-Agency Working Assignment

Morris and Jenny Brown

Morris is 78 and he is the main carer for his wife Jenny who is 79. They arrived in the UK from Jamaica in the late 1950’s on the Windrush ship. They saved up and bought their home in the late 1960’s. They have one son, Nathan who very rarely visits but manages their finances for them. They are Pentecostal Christians and used to attend church every Sunday before Jenny became ill.

Jenny has severe arthritis and is unable to care for herself. Her bed is in the lounge and Morris carries out all of her personal care. In recent months her condition has deteriorated, and she has become very aggressive, swearing and sometimes hitting out at Morris. Their GP has diagnosed her as having Alzheimers. Morris was diagnosed as Bi-polar 20 years ago and has a mental health worker. He copes well unless he becomes stressed and recently there have been episodes where he has heard voices that tell him to discipline Jenny.

Age Concern provided them with a support worker to assist with weekly shopping. The support worker has raised concerns with her Manager about the poor standard of the home and the frailty of both Morris and Jenny. The manager contacted Social Care with the information.

Last week Jenny’s physiotherapist also contacted social care to report his concerns. Jenny had extensive bruising to her face and body. The house was in a poor state structurally, and there were signs of damp in most rooms. There was a strong odour of urine and there were bundles of unwashed clothes stacked in the corner in the kitchen. There was also evidence of mice infestation. He is of the opinion that Morris is unable to cope and that they would both be better off in a residential resource.

When a Social Worker visited Morris, he stated that Nathan “controls” their finances and he has been too scared to ask him for money as when he has done so in the past, Nathan has shouted at him. Morris explained further that that the house needs work and Nathan said he will sort it out but has not done so to date.

• Introduction -Introduce the assignment including the rationale for and philosophy of multi-agency working  (200 words)
  
  
• Outline the key issues in the Case Study that you and your group (your multi-agency team) worked on (100 words)
  
  
• Give a brief overview of each professional role in your multi-agency team and the legislation that inform their practice. (250 words)
  
  
• Explain your professional role in relation to the case study which means that you will need to research your role in depth and the legislation underpinning practice and include this in your assignment (300 words)
  
  
• Demonstrate your understanding of the type of Multi-Agency meeting that you and your group selected and discuss why it was appropriate to your case. You will need to include theories and models of social care as part of your discussion and decision-making (300 words)
  
  
• Demonstrate understanding of service user contribution in the decision-making process and discuss and explain the rationale for the social care tools that you and your group used to develop the action or care plan (250 words)
  
  
• Conclusion - recommendation for the further development of multi-agency working (100 words)

1. You should be able to demonstrate your knowledge and understanding of theory and practice of Multi-Agency Working in Human Services
   
   
2. Demonstrate skills and ability to reflect on, analyse and evaluate the impact of national policies on Multi-Agency Working