Counseling Clients Near the End of Life: A Practical Guide for Mental Health Professionals

This highly accessible guide to counseling terminally ill individuals and their families fills a critical need in the counseling literature. Written for front-line mental health professionals and counseling graduate students, the text integrates empirically-based research with practical guidance. It is replete with the experiences of contributing authors who are leaders in counseling terminally ill persons, real life case examples, clinical "pearls" of wisdom, and summary tables of practice pointers that provide quick access to important knowledge. The text discusses information that is fundamental for all counselors who provide services to terminally ill persons and their families. It addresses common issues that determine different types of counseling approaches such as how the culture of a client affects counselor conceptualizations and actions along with mental health complications and cognitive impairment. The needs of family members are addressed as well as complicated grief. The text examines the particular concerns of counselors regarding working as part of a professional team. Readers will also benefit from the inclusion of additional references for more in-depth study. Key Features: Integrates empirical research with practical and accessible information Provides a reader friendly format that includes clinical "pearls," real life case studies, and separate tables that clearly present important pointers Describes the counseling experiences of leading practitioners that includes examples of successful and unsuccessful interventions Includes numerous additional references for more in-depth study