This volume provides multifaceted and multidisciplinary insights into the growing field of health studies. Providing inputs from the behavioural sciences as well as social sciences, it discusses the issues of recovery from illness, and growth and wellbeing, as situated in social and eco-cultural contexts, and addresses the modalities of health-related interventions in diverse contexts. The specific themes taken up by the contributors are post-trauma growth, resilience, gender and health, distress and wellness, indigenous healing, counselling and psychotherapy, disability-related interventions, self-healing, as well as health issues of special groups like adolescents and the elderly, cancer patients and those suffering from other chronic illnesses. Till recently, the medical model has prevailed as the chief form of understanding health and illness. This has led to marginalization of the context, localization of all health and wellness components within the individual, and to biological reductionism. The contributions to this volume propose corrective measures and provide diverse approaches in a balanced manner. This volume is useful for researchers and practitioners interested in health studies, including the behavioural sciences, social work, medical anthropology, and public health.

Mental health and substance use disorders affect approximately 20 percent of Americans and are associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Although a wide range of evidence-based psychosocial interventions are currently in use, most consumers of mental health care find it difficult to know whether they are receiving high-quality care. Although the current evidence base for the effects of psychosocial interventions is sizable, subsequent steps in the process of bringing a psychosocial intervention into routine clinical care are less well defined. Psychosocial Interventions for Mental and Substance Use Disorders details the reasons for the gap between what is known to be effective and current practice and offers recommendations for how best to address this gap by applying a framework that can be used to establish standards for psychosocial interventions. The framework described in Psychosocial Interventions for Mental and Substance Use Disorders can be used to chart a path toward the ultimate goal of improving the outcomes. The framework highlights the need to (1) support research to strengthen the evidence base on the efficacy and effectiveness of psychosocial interventions; (2) based on this evidence, identify the key elements that drive an intervention's effect; (3) conduct systematic reviews to inform clinical guidelines that incorporate these key elements; (4) using the findings of these systematic reviews, develop quality measures - measures of the structure, process, and outcomes of interventions; and (5) establish methods for successfully implementing and sustaining these interventions in regular practice including the training of providers of these interventions. The recommendations offered in this report are intended to assist policy makers, health care organizations, and payers that are organizing and overseeing the provision of care for mental health and substance use disorders while navigating a new health care landscape. The recommendations also target providers, professional societies, funding agencies, consumers, and researchers, all of whom have a stake in ensuring that evidence-based, high-quality care is provided to individuals receiving mental health and substance use services.

The psychological health of competitive athletes is of paramount importance to performance, retention, and well-being in sport, and national governing bodies are increasingly concerned with its promotion. Psychosocial Health and Well-being in High-Level Athletes offers students, researchers, and practicing sport psychologists an accessible and rigorous grounding in the manifestations of psychosocial health in athletes, the threats athletes face to their psychosocial health, and the interventions which can be designed to enhance it. Seeking to guide future research and expand professional understanding of psychosocial issues in sport, the book is based on a model of cognitive, emotional, social, and spiritual health. It clearly defines these dimensions in a sporting context before discussing pertinent threats—such as career transitions, injuries and abuse—and interventions, including adversarial growth, life-skill interventions, prevention and organization policy, and mindfulness-based interventions. Providing an innovative and integrated perspective on psychosocial health and well-being in competitive sport, this book is essential reading for upper-level students taking any clincial sport psychology modules, and for sport psychologists, coaches, and administrators working with competitive athletes.

In order to give high quality care it is essential that mental health nurses have a solid grasp of the most common therapies and interventions used in mental healthcare. If nurses understand what the various interventions involve then they will be much better equipped to support patients through their recovery. This is a practical, engaging introduction to the major psychosocial interventions that demonstrates to students what the interventions are, why they are important and how they can be used. Key features - Interactive approach through realistic case studies that show how interventions can work to promote recovery - A patient centred approach considers the social as well as psychological aspects of mental healthcare - Each chapter is mapped to the relevant NMC standards and Essential Skills Clusters so that readers can see how they are meeting their professional requirements - Activities throughout challenge the reader to think critically and develop graduate skills

Annotation Overviews research, theory, and intervention for cancer prevention and treatment, and explores conceptual and applied currents in health psychology, public health, and behavioral medicine, reviewing major research programs on patient interventions. Describes current thought on the mechanisms through which psychosocial interventions change behaviors or enhance adjustment. Of interest to health psychologists, public health practitioners, and medical doctors. Baum is deputy director of Cancer Control and Population Sciences of the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute. Andersen teaches psychology at the Ohio State University. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com).

Cancer care today often provides state-of-the-science biomedical treatment, but fails to address the psychological and social (psychosocial) problems associated with the illness. This failure can compromise the effectiveness of health care and thereby adversely affect the health of cancer patients. Psychological and social problems created or exacerbated by cancer-including depression and other emotional problems; lack of information or skills needed to manage the illness; lack of transportation or other resources; and disruptions in work, school, and family life-cause additional suffering, weaken adherence to prescribed treatments, and threaten patients' return to health. Today, it is not possible to deliver high-quality cancer care without using existing approaches, tools, and resources to address patients' psychosocial health needs. All patients with cancer and their families should expect and receive cancer care that ensures the provision of appropriate psychosocial health services. Cancer Care for the Whole Patient recommends actions that oncology providers, health policy makers, educators, health insurers, health planners, researchers and research sponsors, and consumer advocates should undertake to ensure that this standard is met.

In Meeting Psychosocial Needs of Women with Breast Cancer, the National Cancer Policy Board of the Institute of Medicine examines the psychosocial consequences of the cancer experience. The book focuses specifically on breast cancer in women because this group has the largest survivor population (over 2 million) and this disease is the most extensively studied cancer from the standpoint of psychosocial effects. The book characterizes the psychosocial consequences of a diagnosis of breast cancer, describes psychosocial services and how they are delivered, and evaluates their effectiveness. It assesses the status of professional education and training and applied clinical and health services research and proposes policies to improve the quality of care and quality of life for women with breast cancer and their families. Because cancer of the breast is likely a good model for cancer at other sites, recommendations for this cancer should be applicable to the psychosocial care provided generally to individuals with cancer. For breast cancer, and indeed probably for any cancer, the report finds that psychosocial services can provide significant benefits in quality of life and success in coping with serious and life-threatening disease for patients and their families.