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Este artículo deriva del Trabajo Fin de Grado en Trabajo Social que fue presentado en julio de 2017 por Rosa García-Mora y dirigido por María del Mar Del Rincón-Ruiz y Elisa Esteban-Carbonell en la Universidad de Zaragoza (España). ; Aunque la calidad lleva siendo un tema fundamental en el seno de las administraciones públicas en los últimos años, la realidad española es un tanto diferente. Por todo ello, esta investigación, a partir de técnicas de recogida de información cuantitativa y cualitativa, busca esclarecer el significado otorgado a la calidad en la intervención social a través del discurso de las y los profesionales de los Servicios Sociales municipales. Además del concepto de la calidad, el artículo recoge la opinión profesional respecto a la calidad desde el Trabajo Social, desde las personas atendidas y desde la organización. Por otra parte, se recoge la importancia conferida por las y los profesionales en relación con los recursos, la coordinación, el desempeño profesional, así como la persona usuaria como aspectos clave en la calidad de la intervención social. La investigación concluye que, a pesar, de la importancia manifiesta sobre la calidad, todavía se identifican aspectos que la dificultan, siendo la falta de recursos, la ausencia de coordinación y la participación escasa de la población destinataria algunas de los principales. ; Although quality has been a fundamental issue within the public administrations during the last years, the spanish reality is quite different. Consequently, this research, through quantitative and qualitative techniques, aims to clarify the meaning given to the quality of social intervention through the discourse of professionals in municipal social services. In addition to the concept of quality, this article includes the professional´s opinion on the quality of Social Work, the users and the organization. Furthermore, the article contains the importance that professionals attach to resources, coordination, professional performance and users as key aspects of the quality of social intervention. The research concludes that, despite the obvious importance of quality, the professionals still identify the lack of resources, the absence of coordination and the low participation of the users as the main problems ; Departamento de Trabajo Social y Servicios Sociales; Facultad de Trabajo Social

Aunque la calidad lleva siendo un tema fundamental en el seno de las administraciones públicas en los últimos años, la realidad española es un tanto diferente. Por todo ello, esta investigación, a partir de técnicas de recogida de información cuantitativa y cualitativa, busca esclarecer el significado otorgado a la calidad en la intervención social a través del discurso de las y los profesionales de los Servicios Sociales municipales. Además del concepto de la calidad, el artículo recoge la opinión profesional respecto a la calidad desde el Trabajo Social, desde las personas atendidas y desde la organización. Por otra parte, se recoge la importancia conferida por las y los profesionales en relación con los recursos, la coordinación, el desempeño profesional, así como la persona usuaria como aspectos clave en la calidad de la intervención social. La investigación concluye que, a pesar, de la importancia manifiesta sobre la calidad, todavía se identifican aspectos que la dificultan, siendo la falta de recursos, la ausencia de coordinación y la participación escasa de la población destinataria algunas de los principales. ; Although quality has been a fundamental issue within the public administrations during the last years, the spanish reality is quite different. Consequently, this research, through quantitative and qualitative techniques, aims to clarify the meaning given to the quality of social intervention through the discourse of professionals in municipal social services. In addition to the concept of quality, this article includes the professional´s opinion on the quality of Social Work, the users and the organization. Furthermore, the article contains the importance that professionals attach to resources, coordination, professional performance and users as key aspects of the quality of social intervention. The research concludes that, despite the obvious importance of quality, the professionals still identify the lack of resources, the absence of coordination and the low participation of the users as the main problems.

Support for individuals, families or groups still remains an important need and task in contemporary society. It can be carried out by professionals and non-professionals, entities and institutions whose task is to be active in changing the situation into the desired and beneficial one, solving problems, satisfying individual needs or sensitivity, willingness to help, and providing services for people in need. This text is devoted to social service centers, the purpose of which - in accordance with the intention of the legislator - is to create and coordinate integrated local social service systems that will respond to social needs and new civilization challenges. The aim of this study was to identify the basic aspects of creating and functioning of social service centers, with particular emphasis on their tasks, functions and organizational structure. The consequence of the analyzes of these entities is the approximation and popularization of their idea as important institutions in meeting the needs of people and families at the local level, co-creating the social support infrastructure.

The municipal social services must give precedence to or regain the main role of citizens in taking social decisions at a municipal level, by providing innovative mechanisms to express and coordinate, thus allowing for greater participation fromcitizens and social entities. The article analyses the contributions and opportunities for civic participation, and goes deeper into the democratisation of public policies in the municipal sphere. A systematic and reflexive assessment of the contexts, objectives, dimensions, opportunities and mechanisms aimed at incorporating civic participation into social services management. In addition, results and conclusions are presented from recent empirical research into participation in municipal social policies, comparing the reality and trends in studies and experiences, both nationally and internationally. ; Els Serveis Socials municipals ha de prioritzar/recuperar el protagonisme ciutadà en les decisions socials municipals mitjançant la innovació en l'articulació i coordinació de mecanismes que permetin una més gran participació dels ciutadans i de les entitats socials. L'article realitza una anàlisi de les contribucions i oportunitats de la participació ciutadana per aprofundir en la democratització de les polítiques públiques en l'àmbit municipal. Una avaluació sistemàtica i reflexiva dels contextos, objectius, dimensions, oportunitats i mecanismes orientats a incorporar la participació ciutadana en la gestió de serveis socials. Es presenten, a més, resultats i conclusions d'una recent investigació empírica sobre la participació en l'àmbit de les polítiques socials municipals, tot comparant realitats i tendències en estudis i experiències d'àmbit nacional i internacional. ; Los Servicios Sociales municipales deben primar/recuperar el protagonismo ciudadano en las decisiones sociales municipales mediante la innovación en la articulación y coordinación de mecanismos que permitan una mayor participación de los ciudadanos y de las entidades sociales. El artículo realiza un análisis de las contribuciones y oportunidades de la participación ciudadana para profundizar en la democratización de las políticas públicas en el ámbito municipal. Una evaluación sistemática y reflexiva de los contextos, objetivos, dimensiones, oportunidades y mecanismos orientados a incorporar la participación ciudadana en la gestión de servicios sociales. Se presentan, además, resultados y conclusiones de una reciente investigación empírica sobre la participación en el ámbito de las políticas sociales municipales, comparando realidades y tendencias en estudios y experiencias de ámbito nacional e internacional.

The present paper aims not only to identify the problems that the model of conventional farming has caused to the environment, and those related to the education of farmers in our country, but also to view these issues as a challenge, that can lead to the establishment of so-called municipal education centers for sustainable agriculture in rural municipalities, by taking advantage of the new local government architecture, according to L.3852/2010. Programmes at the above-mentioned education centers will be applied on the basis of the three dimensions, namely, lifelong learning, systemic thinking and sustainable agriculture, as a learning objective. They constitute essential preconditions for the transition from the model of conventional farming to that of sustainable agriculture.

PurposeEven though a lot of publications focusing on shared service center (SSC) exist, there is no unique understanding of the term "SSC". The aim of this paper is to obtain an overview of definitions of the term "SSC" and an overview of relevant literature. It also aims to derive a common understanding with the help of SSC characteristics frequently mentioned. Furthermore, it seeks to identify important differences in the definitions and show their implications for the SSC concept.Design/methodology/approachAn extensive literature review was the basis for this research. An online database containing the most important journals had been scanned for SSC definitions. Furthermore, the most cited books had been analyzed.FindingsThere is no unique understanding of SSCs in science and practice. A standardized definition of SSCs is not established. The different definitions vary in many ways. Nevertheless, some characteristics that define the term SSC are mentioned in most publications, including consolidation of processes within the group, delivery of support processes, cost cutting as a major driver, focus on internal customers, alignment with external customers, separated organizational unit and operation like a business. Although there is a common understanding about SSC in parts, fundamental differences were identified, especially between SSC definitions for public and private sectors. These differences have several impacts on the understanding and application of the SSC concept.Research limitations/implicationsThe most relevant publications have been considered, but probably not all publications with definitions of the term "SSC". Future research must include more publications as well as the perceptions of practitioners. Furthermore, the perception of SSC management and staff has not been analyzed.Practical implicationsOwing to the fact that many different definitions for SSC exist, people dealing with a SSC are confused about the meaning of the term – confusion which is likely to result in ambiguity concerning research interpretations. The differences in definitions should be known to understand practical implications like different requirements in governance or regulation.Originality/valueSome research in the area of SSCs has already been conducted. Nevertheless, neither extensive literature overviews of existing definitions nor comparisons of these definitions for the term SSC exist. The discrepancies in definitions and their implications have not yet been considered.

Hispanics, who live in suburban communities, evaluate municipal services positively. Variations in their assessments of services are related to satisfaction with their social environment. (Abstract amended)

AbstractWe study a service design problem in diagnostic service centers, call centers that provide medical advice to patients over the phone about what the appropriate course of action is, based on the caller's symptoms. Due to the tension between increased diagnostic accuracy and the increase in waiting times more in‐depth service requires, managers face a difficult decision in determining the optimal service depth to guide the diagnostic process. The specific problem we consider models the situation when the capacity (staffing level) at the center is fixed, and when the callers have both congestion‐ and noncongestion‐related costs relating to their call. We develop a queueing model incorporating these features and find that the optimal service depth can take one of two different structures, depending on factors such as the nurses' skill level and the maximum potential demand. Sensitivity analyses of the two optimal structures show that they are quite different. In some situations, it may (or may not) be optimal for the manager to try to expand the demand at the center, and increasing skill level may (or may not) increase congestion. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2012