Client-Centred Therapist in Psychiatric Contexts

Lisbeth Sommerbeck is a clinical psychologist, accredited as a specialist in psychotherapy and supervision by the Danish Psychological Association. Since 1974 she has been employed in Dianalund Psychiatric Hospital in Denmark. She has solid personal experience of the ups and downs of being dedicated to the person-centred approach in medicalised psychiatric contexts and in practising client-centred therapy with psychiatric clients.

• PART ONE: The Author's Conceptualisation of Client-Centred Theory: The basic concepts. On the universality of client-centred therapy. On the relative importance of the three core conditions with psychiatric clients. On the role of developmental theories. A note on ideals and reality. PART TWO: Relating with the professionals of psychiatry. The complementarity of client-centred therapy and the medical model. Client-centred theory and the question of psychiatric diagnosis. The patients from the psychiatrist's viewpoint. The duality of the client-centred therapist in the medical model setting.The role of the client-centred therapist in staff conferences. Helping the helpers and taking care of the caretakers. The limits of the setting are the therapist's limits. Advantages of working in the medical model setting of a psychiatric hospital. PART THREE: Relating with the patients of psychiatry. Patients diagnosed with psychotic depression. Characteristics of the therapy process.The issue of suicide. Patients diagnosed with other kinds of psychoses. The diagnosis of schizophrenia. 'Out of contact' Pre-therapy. Other characteristics of therapy processes with psychotic clients. Patients diagnosed with a near-psychotic condition. The risk of facilitating actualisation of the client's more destructive potentials. Near-psychotic clients and unconditional positive regard. Near-psychotic clients and empathic understanding. Near-psychotic clients and congruence. Near-psychotic clients and non-directivity. Doing no harm. PART FOUR: Cultural differences, the critique of psychiatry and another perspective.

As an enthusiast of the person-centred approach, and one who works in a psychiatric setting, I feel I have benefited immensely from reading this book. - I whole heartedly recommend it to person-centred counsellors and therapists seeking more of an understanding of psychiatric settings - I believe this should include all trainees and person-centred therapists. I share her opinion that 'psychiatry today is in dire need of a humanistic revitalisation'. This book will hopefully encourage others, as it has me, to embrace with her the challenge of working towards this. Rachel Freeth, HCPJ, April 2004. I read this book with several different hats on. As a counsellor trainer I thought this book offered a valuable way of bridging the gap between the medical model and client-centered therapy - As a counsellor with an integrative theoretical orientation, I found the author's classifications of client-centred therapists illuminating. - As a mental health nurse, this book introduced me to 'pre-therapy' first developed by Garry Prouty. - I think this is an invaluable book both for trainers and experienced counsellors working within a variety of settings. It has certainly left me feeling reflective on how I communicate my experience of empathically understanding the client. Victoria Cole, CPJ, March 2004. Sommerbeck's 30 years' of experience working in a psychiatric setting make this lucid book a must-read for anyone interested in working humanistically with clients who bear severe diagnoses or within institutions and systems. Kathy Moon, Person-centred pratitioner and academic.