Psychiatric Rehabilitation Consultants (PRC)

Schizophrenia is a major psychiatric illness affecting up to four million Americans, often having a devastating impact on the lives of patients and their families. In the last 20 years the mental health profession has undergone a dramatic change, from blaming the family for the patient's schizophrenia to seeking their help as important members of the client's treatment team.

Coping with Schizophrenia: A Guide for Families provides extraordinary practical support. It's the first book to offer detailed, step-by-step help for people who live and work with a person suffering from schizophrenia. It features strategies for solving day-to-day problems, such as preventing relapses, regulating medications, finding community resources, managing stress, establishing household rules, dealing with depression and anxiety, overcoming alcohol and drug abuse, responding to crises, improving quality of life, and planning for the patient's future.

In addition to outlining effective techniques for managing schizophrenia, the book provides a complete overview of the disease, its treatment, and resources for families. — by Kim Mueser, Ph.D. and Susan Gingerich, M.S.W.

Kim T. Mueser, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Community and Family Medicine at Dartmouth Medical School, where he specializes in the treatment of severe mental disorders. He has written extensively on mental illness, and he regularly lectures and presents workshops on how to manage patients with schizophrenia. He recently co-authored Social Skills Training for Psychiatric Patients, featured in the Behavioral Sciences Book Club

Susan Gingerich, M.S.W., is a Research Associate at the Medical College of Pennsylvania, where she helps families learn to cope with schizophrenia. She has co-authored treatment manuals for professionals and families. She and Dr. Mueser have written several books together, including the Workbook for Behavioral Family Therapy.