Abstract

The book highlights many interesting discussion areas, leading toward reflection led practice. The need and value of supervision for those working for the NHS is another interesting area touched on throughout this book'

- A&E

'It is recommended for all counsellors who work part-time or full-time in healthcare, and will also be invaluable for many colleagues of these counsellors and also all those who manage such services. Each chapter is written in a lively, personal way that invites the reader into a relationship with the author, raising awareness of the dilemmas counsellors may face in their work and what they need to support them, especially training and good supervision. The book represents a significant step forward in the literature on healthcare counselling and a copy should find its way into every healthcare library where counselling is a key part of the delivery of care.'

- Healthcare Counselling and Psychotherapy Journal

'It is recommended for all counsellors who work part-time or full-time in health-care, and will also be invaluable for many colleagues of these counsellors and also all those who manage such services. Each chapter is written in a lively, personal way that invites the reader into a relationship with the author, raising awareness of the dilemmas counsellors may face in their work and what they need to support them, especially training and good supervision. The book represents a significant step forward in the literature on healthcare counselling and a copy should find its way into every healthcare library where counselling is a key part of the delivery of care.'

- HCPJ

'This thought-provoking book gives contextualisation to the growth area of counselling in the NHS and elsewhere. Each chapter provides fascinating personal insights into experiences such as palliative care, counselling, cancer care, living with HIV/AIDS, young people and sexual health, counselling in fertility problems and two chapters on counselling in the mental health services. It explores the lived experiences of clients and professionals, helping them to apply theory to practice and giving, rather than detached observations, intensely personal windows into what actually goes on between client and counsellor. Despite being centred mostly on hospital work, the book would be useful for work in the domiciliary setting, particularly for community psychiatric nurses, school nurses and for those who specialise in serious, chronic, or life-threatening conditions.'

- Community Practitioner

'I very much enjoyed reading this book because of the insight it gave me into the different ways in which counsellors work in health settings. Such information can be difficult to come by because of confidentiality issues and when working with individual clients. I was also touched by the open way in which all the authors wrote when including personal details and their own reflections on their work. Throughout this book I found my attention held by the counsellors' accounts of the way in which they approached their work with clients, linking with their personal reflections and comments on their own theoretical perspectives. Each chapter is written by a different author and includes queries and questions raised by the difficulties in the work they undertake, such as balancing the medical model with a person-centred holistic model, confidentiality issues, and the importance of supervision when working with very distressed clients. I recommend this book to all counsellors wishing to gain some insight into counselling in different settings'

- National Association of Cancer Counsellors

Focusing on the experiences of counsellors themselves, this book is a comprehensive resource for counsellors working in health contexts and for the health professionals who work with them, and may take on counselling roles. The contributors, who include clients, health care workers, psychiatrists and academics as well as counsellors, show how counselling can and should form an integral part of a patient's health care, explaining key theoretical considerations and relevant research and applying these to suggestions for good practice. They also discuss the needs of counsellors themselves (for example for supervision and support) and the variety of roles that counsellors and health care workers are expected to fulfil. This book will inform and improve the work of professionals in a range of health care contexts including those working with patients who have cancer, HIV and AIDS or who are having treatment for infertility; and in the fields of young people's sexual health and palliative care.