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Dilemmas and difficulties in the management of psychiatric patients
200
Book Reviews
Childhood disorder.~ Specifically, this section focuses on responsiveness of autistic children to other people, cognitive and academic impairment in childhood depression, two papers offering (i) social skills training and (ii) ‘dolphin therapy’ to children with learning difficulties, and one paper investigating assessment of attention deficit disorder. Schizophrenia The fourth chapter in this book is particularly specialized and has papers on cognitive and hemisphere functioning, and personality assessment of patientswith schizophrenia. There is also a rather novel paper giving a developmental perspective of the life course of schizophrenia. Neuropsychology The papers contained within this chapter are specific to assessment and treatment of children with percepto-motor dysfunction, memory and dementia in the elderly, psychometric assessment of memory, and psychological and neurological effects of medical treatment in kidney failure and diabetes respectively. Health psychology The concluding chapter for this book is more extensive and has an assortment of papers investigating psychological causes and treatment of coronary heart disease, psychosomatic hypertension, type A behaviour, sexual dysfunction and chronic pain. Two papers examine the use of computer programs in assessment of health problems and another two focus on the effects of pre-operative care and post-trauma psychological factors on patient levels of anxiety and recovery. There is also one paper on knowledge and fear about AIDS in college students, and one on the use of benzodiazipines by the elderly. On the whole, the selected papers in this book are interesting and highly specialized. They would be a useful addition to university, polytechnic, medical and nursing school libraries, providing specialist material for the clinician and researcher. The book does not, however, give a general overview of this area of psychology and as such would not be appropriate as a basic text for introductory courses. HEATHER SALK Psychologist Royal Free Hospital London
Dilemmas and Difficulties in the Management and PHILIP COWEN. Oxford: Oxford University
of Psychiatric Patients. Press, 1990. 257 pp.
Edited
by
KEITH
HALWON
STANDARD psychiatric textbooks are generally weak when discussing the management of patients whose symptoms do not conform to recognized syndromes or patterns of recovery. Although small in numbers these patients take up a considerable amount of clinicians’ time; diagnostic and therapeutic guidelines are needed to help manage them effectively. This book should prove a valuable source of advice if it is used to supplement general textbooks and review papers. It is compiled of a number of chapters presented at a two day meeting at Green College, Oxford in April 1989, each contributor being asked to review a particular area of controversy and difficulty. The organizers were successful in assembling a distinguished list of experts so the book bears the stamp of authority. The topics covered are just those which psychiatrists are likely to find most difficult in clinical practice. They include the management of depressive illness which does not respond to tricyclic therapy, mania resistant to neuroleptics, indications for monoamine oxidase inhibitors, prevention of hospital suicide and the management of chronic fatigue. A particular strength of the book is the inclusion of brief clinical guidelines at the end of each chapter. These provide a brief summary of the points to be considered in relation to each clinical problem and could be readily consulted in emergency situations. This is a book which fills a gap in the psychiatric literature and consequently should be widely available to clinicians at all levels of training. G. G. LI.OYU Consultant Psychiatrist Royal Free Hospital London
Personality 315 pp.
and Disease.
Edited
by HOWARD S.
FRIEDMAN.
New
York:
Wiley,
1990. Price f28.30.
THE CONCEPT of ‘Personality Disorder’ has always been controversial. Despite the efforts made by those designing DMS-III-R. many psychiatrists, especially in the United Kingdom, remain sceptical about the
Book Reviews
Childhood disorder.~ Specifically, this section focuses on responsiveness of autistic children to other people, cognitive and academic impairment in childhood depression, two papers offering (i) social skills training and (ii) ‘dolphin therapy’ to children with learning difficulties, and one paper investigating assessment of attention deficit disorder. Schizophrenia The fourth chapter in this book is particularly specialized and has papers on cognitive and hemisphere functioning, and personality assessment of patientswith schizophrenia. There is also a rather novel paper giving a developmental perspective of the life course of schizophrenia. Neuropsychology The papers contained within this chapter are specific to assessment and treatment of children with percepto-motor dysfunction, memory and dementia in the elderly, psychometric assessment of memory, and psychological and neurological effects of medical treatment in kidney failure and diabetes respectively. Health psychology The concluding chapter for this book is more extensive and has an assortment of papers investigating psychological causes and treatment of coronary heart disease, psychosomatic hypertension, type A behaviour, sexual dysfunction and chronic pain. Two papers examine the use of computer programs in assessment of health problems and another two focus on the effects of pre-operative care and post-trauma psychological factors on patient levels of anxiety and recovery. There is also one paper on knowledge and fear about AIDS in college students, and one on the use of benzodiazipines by the elderly. On the whole, the selected papers in this book are interesting and highly specialized. They would be a useful addition to university, polytechnic, medical and nursing school libraries, providing specialist material for the clinician and researcher. The book does not, however, give a general overview of this area of psychology and as such would not be appropriate as a basic text for introductory courses. HEATHER SALK Psychologist Royal Free Hospital London
Dilemmas and Difficulties in the Management and PHILIP COWEN. Oxford: Oxford University
of Psychiatric Patients. Press, 1990. 257 pp.
Edited
by
KEITH
HALWON
STANDARD psychiatric textbooks are generally weak when discussing the management of patients whose symptoms do not conform to recognized syndromes or patterns of recovery. Although small in numbers these patients take up a considerable amount of clinicians’ time; diagnostic and therapeutic guidelines are needed to help manage them effectively. This book should prove a valuable source of advice if it is used to supplement general textbooks and review papers. It is compiled of a number of chapters presented at a two day meeting at Green College, Oxford in April 1989, each contributor being asked to review a particular area of controversy and difficulty. The organizers were successful in assembling a distinguished list of experts so the book bears the stamp of authority. The topics covered are just those which psychiatrists are likely to find most difficult in clinical practice. They include the management of depressive illness which does not respond to tricyclic therapy, mania resistant to neuroleptics, indications for monoamine oxidase inhibitors, prevention of hospital suicide and the management of chronic fatigue. A particular strength of the book is the inclusion of brief clinical guidelines at the end of each chapter. These provide a brief summary of the points to be considered in relation to each clinical problem and could be readily consulted in emergency situations. This is a book which fills a gap in the psychiatric literature and consequently should be widely available to clinicians at all levels of training. G. G. LI.OYU Consultant Psychiatrist Royal Free Hospital London
Personality 315 pp.
and Disease.
Edited
by HOWARD S.
FRIEDMAN.
New
York:
Wiley,
1990. Price f28.30.
THE CONCEPT of ‘Personality Disorder’ has always been controversial. Despite the efforts made by those designing DMS-III-R. many psychiatrists, especially in the United Kingdom, remain sceptical about the