Professionellas arbete med anhöriga vid skadligt bruk : Att synliggöra de närstående: en kvalitativ analys av verksamheters arbete med anhöriga

Sammanfattning

The aim of this study is to explore how social workers in services for substance abuse work with a family-focused perspective and how organizational, relationaland structural factors influence the inclusion of relatives. The study was performed through a qualitative approach, based on seven semi-structured interviews with professionals who work within social work and addiction servicesin southern Sweden. The empirical data was analysed through a thematic analysisto identify patterns in how professionals describe their work with relatives and their interpretation of the conditions shaping the implementation of a family-focused perspective. The findings resulted in five key themes related to professionals’ work with relatives: relatives as a source but conditioned by the client’s will, confidentiality, stigma and relatives as challenges, lack of structure, guidelines and competence, emotional strain and inadequacy in the work, relational and situation-based work. The study shows that although a family perspective is recognized as essential, its implementation remains inconsistent. Professionals must continuously navigate between relatives’ needs with the clients autonomy and confidentiality, while organisational and structural conditions limit the systematic inclusion of relatives. The findings highlight the need for clearer guidelines and strengthened organizational support to ensure a more consistent and inclusive integration of a family-focused practice in social work. The implications of the findings are shown essential to develop a social work practice that addresses the needs of individuals with substance use and their relatives.