Reviewer: Janice D Hinds, MS, OTR/L, BCMH (Colorado Mental Health Institute at Fort Logan)
Description: The book covers multiple aspects of mental health practice in the field of occupational therapy, contained within a framework of person-occupation-environment, which is a relatively unique and useful organizational structure. The book has a good flow, in part because of the underlying structure featuring The Lived Experience, embedded cross-references to other chapters, Here's the Point, Apply It Now, and Resources and References sections. This updates the first edition published in 2011.
Purpose: The purpose is to "cast a vision for participation and recovery among people with mental health disorders," and "to deliver both a breadth and depth of information related to mental health practice." This book does that: it describes concepts of mental health and occupational therapy, consumers and providers, and living a meaningful life, and provides thought-provoking notions and tangible interventions to realize the value the profession brings to achieving that purpose. The objectives are outlined in the preface and are embedded in the introduction to each of the four sections of the book. The book meets these objectives by imparting information, asking reflective questions, and/or providing references to resources, and doing so in a multifaceted manner, with respectful intent and language, aligning with the Recovery Model, thereby giving voice and action to supporting people on their journey of living with and recovery from mental illness. That is why this book is necessary and valued — it models the way, with heart.
Audience: The audience includes entry-level OT students as well as practicing therapists, who may use it as a reference. I used the first edition in practice and assume I will use this second edition in much the same manner: as a reference for a specific topic, to supplement my idea generating for assessments and treatments, as a shared resource for fieldwork students, and as an adjunct for a university's mental health course. The book meets the needs of the intended audiences. The authors are recognized experts, as are their contributors and reviewers. This is the second edition for two of the authors, who are professors and former clinicians, assessment designers, reviewers of mental health publications and conference proceedings, named and de facto leaders in the profession, and have earned distinctions for their work in occupational therapy, specifically mental health, and have served as mentors to numerous students and colleagues.
Features: The book is an overview of "all things pertinent to occupational therapy practice with a focus on mental health and wellness." It provides a historical grounding; lists numerous models of practice and accompanying assessment tools and subsequent interventions and describes their use; addresses concepts across the lifespan; describes numerous practice settings and diagnostic categories; and reviews multiple aspects relevant to mental health. Some of best aspects of the book are the voices of consumers and people who help. These are included in each chapter as "Stories That Teach" and/or "The Lived Experience," often accompanied by photographs. These sections bring alive the human factor and reason practitioners accompany people on their journey of recovery. Other helpful features are the numerous cross references to like topics in other chapters (which minimizes redundancy along with the overt yet subtle dissemination of information vs. teaching it in a siloed manner). Multiple resources are included in each chapter. "Here's the Point" is a summary of the chapter and "Apply It Now" consists of questions and to-do suggestions presented in a reflective manner, guiding readers through clinical reasoning related to models of practice. These activities are creative and subtle yet culturally relevant coaching strategies, as they demonstrate how OT practitioners think and reason. Lastly, the resources include references to books, organizations, websites, guidelines, and sometimes these are categorized geographically for providers and/or for individuals and families. The type and plethora of resources seem innovative and hip and represent multimodal strategies for continued learning, which should be enticing to professors and to students. There are just enough photographs, schematics, figures and tables, evidence-based practice or research boxes, and drawings to break up the text and/or augment the written word. Teal must be an "in" color and it is used in multiple shades throughout the textbook. [The first edition used purple — which I like better!] Areas that are missing or could have been covered in more depth include: collaboration and role delineation with occupational therapy assistants; rural practice; community and school violence; human trafficking; grief and loss (had its own chapter in the first edition). I live in a state where suicide is a top killer of young adults, and we've had several school and community shootings that have made national news. Legislative efforts include a Zero Suicide Model and addressing gun safety. I'm probably a little more sensitive to these aspects than practitioners in other areas of the country.
Assessment: I love this book — I loved the first edition, too! It will be an invaluable resource for students studying occupational therapy and mental health, and a worthwhile investment that will be used in practice. This is a comprehensive book, and the second edition a necessary update. Other similar books are up to a decade old (e.g., Psychosocial Occupational Therapy: An Evolving Practice, 3rd edition, Cara and MacRae (Cengage Learning, 2013), and Occupational Therapy in Mental Health: Considerations for Advanced Practice, Scheinholtz (American Occupational Therapy Association, 2010)). Complementary books focus on specific aspects, such as cognition (Cognition and Occupation Across the Lifespan: Neuroscience, Neurorehabilitation and Models of Intervention in Occupational Therapy, 4th edition, Katz and Toglia (American Occupational Therapy Association, 2018)), or group dynamics (Group Dynamics in Occupational Therapy: The Theoretical Basis and Practice Application of Group Intervention, 5th edition, Cole (Slack, 2018)), or children (Mental Health Promotion, Prevention, and Intervention with Children and Youth, Bazyk (American Occupational Therapy Association, 2011)), and OTA practice (Mental Health Concepts and Techniques for the Occupational Therapy Assistant, 5th edition, Early (Wolters Kluwer, 2017)). This is a user-friendly book. The appendixes and indexes include one for assessments, another for interventions, and one for practice models and theoretical approaches, along with a glossary and traditional index. Instead of an alpha listing with the page(s) noted, they are organized alphabetically with a short synopsis and listings of chapters with further information, which creatively and wisely matches the cross-referencing done within each chapter. The authors point out that the additions to this update include eight new chapters, such as references to DSM-5; new and emerging mental health practice settings such as military, integrated behavioral health, early psychoses, and primary care; updated The Lived Experience, Photo Voice, and Stories That Teach vignettes; and chapters on anxiety, trauma, and stress-related disorders. These additions are necessary to keep mental health occupational therapy practice relevant and contemporary.
