Principles of Neuropsychological Rehabilitation, 1999

Principles of Neuropsychological Rehabilitation, 1999

Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Number Of Pages: 368
Publication Date: 1999-06-30
Sales Rank: 437724
ISBN / ASIN: 0195081439
EAN: 9780195081435
Binding: Hardcover
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
Studio: Oxford University Press, USA
Average Rating: 5

Without guiding principles, clinicians can easily get lost in the maze of problems that a brain-damaged patient presents. This book underlines the importance of patients' subjective experience of brain disease or injury, and the frustration and confusion they undergo. It shows that the symptom picture is a mixture of premorbid cognitive and personal characteristics with the neuropsychological changes directly associated with brain pathology. By closely observing the patient's behavior, the clinician can teach him or her about the direct and indirect effects of brain damage. The book provides guidelines both for the remediation of higher cerebral disturbances and the management of patients interpersonal problems. It presents a new perspective on disorders of self-awareness and recovery as well as deterioration phenomena after brain injury. It will be an invaluable resource for psychologists, neurologists, and psychiatrists involved in neuropsychological rehabilitation.

Review:

A clinicians perspective on the Principles

In this seminal work, George Prigatano specifies what is state-of-the-art in Neuropsychological Rehabilitation at the end of the twentieth century. This book is essential reading for anyone working in this field, whether they be Clinical/Neuro-psychologists or related health professionals. It puts neuropsych rehab into an historical perspective, identifying the key people who have shaped the field over the 19th and 20th centuries. By doing so Prigatano rightfully elevates himself to that level, while at the same time acknowledging his contemporaries.

"Principles" is packed with clinically-useful information giving an overview of current best-practice as well as identifying the yawning gaps which exist in the research. A good illustration of this is the chapter on Awareness/Anosognosia which is a nice adjunct to Prigatano and Shachter's 1991 book on the same topic.

From the point of view of the practising clinician, a few years out from clinical training, it is wonderful the way in which Prigatano synthesises the breadth of research on a topic. He identifies the neural substrates of clincal phenomena, tests sensitive to deficit, the associated behaviour, and where possible, the treatment options.

If I were to criticise this work (which I am loathe to do because as you can tell I like it very much!) I would I would like to read more about the different settings that rehabilitation occurs in, how they compare, and which clients benefit best from which system.

Final note: A terrific resource for anyone interested in Neuropsychological Rehabilitation. Well-written and reflecting the lifetime work of a central figure in the field. Synthesises the history of rehabilitation with up-to-the-minute research (much of it Prigatano's own), and filling the gaps in the literature with snippets of his own clinical experience.

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