Cooperation and multi-professionality at family centres

Objective of the assessment

The main question in the assessment was whether the family centre model has increased cooperation between different professionals according to the objectives. The family centre model seeks to create a service entity that combines various services required by children and families and operates with a multi-professional approach. Interprofessional cooperation was examined in services centralised to family centres in particular but also between family centres and other services essential to families or children. Members of the supervisor networks of four family centres in Helsinki were interviewed for the assessment.

Conclusions

The family centre model has increased cooperation between different professionals according to the objectives. The two brick-and-mortar family centres and two network-like family centres examined in the assessment are implementing multi-professional assessment of service needs to an increasing extent*. Cooperation between different professionals has developed, and customers’ access to services that meet their needs can be considered to have improved. However, this work is just beginning in most parts of Helsinki. Multi-professional service needs assessment is mainly carried out by service needs assessment and support units for families with children but not yet by maternity and child health teams. Cooperation between different professionals is the most advanced at Itäkatu Family Centre, which has been operating for a long time. Physical proximity is a very significant factor that increases cooperation, but launching cooperation requires an agreed operating model. The family centres found it difficult that there is a lack of cooperation with some important parties, such as psychiatric and substance abuse services for adults. Based on the assessment, it is also important for the services offered to immigrants at family centres to be strengthened.