Press reviews for: The Theory and Practice of Democratic Therapeutic Community Treatment
Dr Heather Castillo, Independent Consultant and author of Personality Disorder: Temperament or Trauma and The Reality of Recovery in Personality Disorder
This superb and important book, written by two of the most knowledgeable and experienced proponents of Therapeutic Communities, tracks their history, theory and detailed workings from assessment to treatment. It is a book that teaches us emancipating approaches which holds the key to a more humanised psychiatry.
John Cox, Past President, Royal College of Psychiatrists, Professor Emeritus, Keele University, UK
The NHS is looking for a new interpersonal model of health care provision that will heal patients and retain staff. The values of the Therapeutic Community (empowerment, creativity, search for meaning and democracy) are core parts of what is currently missing. This book is a 'must read' and 'must act' for any thoughtful purchaser, patient or provider - before it is too late.
Bob Hinshelwood, Emeritus Professor of Psychoanalysis, University of Essex
This book is a wonderful blend of academic prose and radical thinking. It is about the person as well as the 'illness', and engaging with someone who is struggling with themselves, whatever the chemistry of their brain. This is how-to advice on a level playing field of 'democracy', where the person will always have to take a personal responsibility for how they handle their relationships. Psychiatry has to be about lessons for living and not just a top-down medicalisation that removes the skills of decision-making and agency. Read it and learn not just about humans in distress but reflect on our profession in disorder.