Tackling Mental Health Crises

How can medical, psychological and social approaches to tackling crises be integrated?

How best to manage clients who present in crisis is a vital but much neglected area of clinical practice. "Tackling Mental Health Crises" aims to provide a practical guide to combining social and psychological responses to mental health problems.

David Kingdon and Marie Finn look at what constitutes a crisis, be it an individual crisis presentation or a situational crisis for services.

They reject current diagnostic approaches to mental health, focusing instead on a symptom-led approach and keeping an awareness of the intervention experience for clients and carers throughout.

Subjects covered include: engaging and assessing the client; risk assessment and management; emotional, behavioural, cognitive and physical presentations; and service teams and settings.

The emphasis throughout is on taking a holistic look at crisis prevention and management, encompassing both the work that takes place at an individual level and the wider impact of societal and political issues. "Tackling Mental Health Crises" contains clear direction and practical advice, combined with numerous case studies and commentary from users and carers themselves.

It will be of great use to anyone involved with dealing with mental health crises, including mental health nurses, social workers, psychologists, general practitioners and psychiatrists.