Shared care

In a more mainstream health-orientated context, the term can be used for the schemes involving patient empowerment that are targeted at medical problems as substance abuse and diabetes.

While generally welcomed, shared care approaches can raise concerns about what is expected from different individuals and, for healthcare professionals, the consequent legal implications of changes in liability.

Shared care is used in a social context to describe the activities of organisations that provide short breaks for disadvantaged children or those helping to enlist families for short-term fostering.

[2] The practice is widespread with examples throughout the country of this usage, with clients from all age groups and types of disabilities or social problems.

The Child Support Agency uses the term for a very specific purpose: "it refers to each of the separated parents having the children with them part of the time, so that direct expenditure is shared too.