Collaborative Health and Social Care

Health and social care are systems that, at their best, work together to support people through illness, disability, mental health challenges, ageing and social disadvantage. In practice, these systems have often operated in silos, with healthcare professionals and social care workers trained separately and communicating poorly. Collaborative health and social care addresses that problem directly, preparing graduates to work across professional boundaries and to understand both the clinical and the social dimensions of human need.

This four-year full-time degree at the University of the West of Scotland takes an integrated approach, asking you to think about the person at the centre of care rather than the organisational structures that surround them. You will develop knowledge of health conditions and social care frameworks alongside the communication, teamwork and leadership skills that collaborative practice demands. The programme will ask you to consider how poverty, housing, mental health and physical illness interact, and how professionals from different disciplines can work together more effectively to deliver better outcomes for individuals and communities.

Graduates are equipped for roles in a wide range of health and social care settings, including the NHS, local authorities, voluntary sector organisations and integrated care teams. Positions in care coordination, support work, community health, public health, social work and health management are all relevant destinations. The degree also provides a foundation for postgraduate training in specific health or social care professions for those who wish to pursue registration and specialist practice.