Counseling Persons With Communication Disorders and Their Families

Rating:
Summary: Essential Reading for Professionals
Review: I highly recommend Dr. Luterman's text book to any professional who works with the families of people with disabilities. I had read the book seven years ago as part of my graduate training in speech-language pathology. More than any other book, this one has had a lasting effect on my clinical practice. Dr. Luterman is an research audiologist turned counselor. When discussing the issues facing families, he presents research as well as personal anecdotes and quotes from the families he was worked with in his practice. The clinical anecdotes give a personal feel to much of the writing; for a text book, it is can be emotionally charged reading. The book describes models of understanding family adaptation to disabilities, and perhaps most importantly, the book describes basic counseling techniques. Whenever the going gets tough with a family, I find myself referring back to this book, especially the chapters on counseling techniques. One reason that I recommend this book so highly is that it contains information that is difficult to come by. I work with speech-pathology interns and graduate students, as well as other professionals - occupational and physical therapists, nurses and educators. Although many are very skilled in their discipline, they often feel defeated in their attempts to understand or deal with family issues. When I loan them Dr. Luterman's book, they consistently find it illuminating.