Bibliotherapy and Bereavement: Harnessing the Power of Reading to Enhance Family Coping in Pediatric Palliative Care.

Bibliotherapy is a therapeutic intervention that could potentially be utilized by pediatric palliative care social workers to aid in providing individualized support and adaptive coping techniques through end-of-life and bereavement. Multiple modalities of implementing bibliotherapy are considered, including applications in individual and group counseling. An institutionally supported bibliotherapy program that aims to provide therapeutic and recreational texts for patients, families and clinicians is described. Suggested guidelines and book titles for use in practice with bereaved siblings and families are provided alongside targeted description for use in clinical practice.

[Guided self-help interventions for parents of children with ADHD--concept, referral and effectiveness in a nationwide trial. An observational study]. / Angeleitete Selbsthilfe für Eltern von Kindern mit Aufmerksamkeitsdefizit-/Hyperaktivitätsstörung--Konzept, Inanspruchnahme und Effekte eines bundesweiten Angebotes--eine Beobachtungsstudie.

OBJECTIVES: The effects of guided self-help interventions for parents of children with ADHD have already been proven in randomized controlled trials. The objective of this study was to assess the effectiveness of this novel form of intervention under routine care conditions in a nationwide trial. METHOD: Registered pediatricians as well as child and youth psychiatrists enrolled 274 children between 6 and 12 years old (83.6% male) diagnosed with ADHD to a self-help program for parents of children with ADHD. The program lasted for 1 year and consisted of eight booklets with advice for parenting children with ADHD as well as complementary telephone consultations (14 calls, up to 20 minutes each). The course of the ADHD symptoms and the comorbid symptoms as well as the development of the child's individual problems were assessed in a pre-post design. RESULTS: 63% of the enrolled parents adhered to the program until the end. The families who cancelled the program did not differ concerning the severity of ADHD symptoms, but they did more often show an impaired familial and social background, and their children received pharmacological treatment more often. Three-fourths of the children who completed the program had received pharmacological treatment at the beginning of the program. The children had more severe ADHD symptoms than a clinical control group. During the intervention, ADHD symptoms as well as psychosocial functioning improved with large effect sizes of d>0.9. Additionally, comorbid oppositional and emotional symptoms decreased. CONCLUSIONS: These results indicate that guided self-help programs for families with children with ADHD are effective, also as an addition to pharmacological treatment.

The power of words.

Reading in a group can help patients with mental health conditions to build up their self-belief.

Integrating self-help materials into mental health practice.

PROBLEM ADDRESSED: Patients' mental health issues have become an increasing focus of Canadian family physicians' practices. A self-help approach can help meet this demand, but there are few guidelines for professionals about how to use mental health self-help resources effectively. OBJECTIVE OF PROGRAM: To aid health professionals in integrating self-help materials into their mental health practices. PROGRAM DESCRIPTION: A resource library of print, audiotape, and videotape self-help materials about common mental health issues was developed for a rural community. The materials were prescreened in order to ensure high quality, and health professionals were given training on how to integrate self-help into their practices. The library was actively used by both health professionals and community members, and most resources were borrowed, particularly the nonprint materials. Health professionals viewed the resources as a way to supplement their mental health practice and reduce demands on their time, as patients generally worked through the resources independently. Some improvements are planned for future implementations of the program, such as providing health professionals with a "prescription pad" of resources and implementing Stages of Change and stepped-care models to maximize the program's effectiveness. CONCLUSION: Although more evidence is needed regarding the effectiveness of self-help within a family practice context, this program offers a promising way for family physicians to address mild to moderate mental health problems.

A community-based intervention for treating depression in seniors.

This study piloted and refined a community-based behavioural intervention for depressed seniors. The intervention, based on Lewinsohn's Control Your Depression, was administered in bibliotherapy format adapted for seniors. It was delivered in a minimal-contact format by home care nurses. The intervention was tested and refined in a series of3 multiple-baseline studies, each with 2 participants. Each series consisted of baseline, 6 weekly treatment sessions, and 3-month follow-up. Series A tested the feasibility of the intervention. Series B examined the role of pleasant activities as a pivotal part of the treatment. Series C replicated the findings of series B and tested the final version of the intervention. In all the series, there was a reduction in depression that remained at 3-month follow-up. The results indicate that this form of intervention can be supported by home care nurses working with an underserved population that is prone to depression.

The effectiveness of a bibliotherapy in increasing the self-management ability of slightly to moderately frail older people.

OBJECTIVE: Self-management ability (SMA) is the ability to obtain those resources necessary for the production of well-being. With age, SMA becomes increasingly important, if one has a large variety of resources, physical and psychosocial losses due to the aging process can be substituted or compensated for. This study examined whether an increase in SMA would ensure sustainable levels of positive well-being among slightly to moderately frail older people. METHODS: A bibliotherapy was developed to increase the SMA of slightly to moderately frail older people, and to help these persons to sustain a certain level of well-being. The effectiveness of this bibliotherapy was examined by comparing the SMA, mastery, and subjective well-being of 97 older people participating in the bibliotherapy to those of 96 older people in a delayed-treatment control condition. RESULTS: The bibliotherapy resulted in a significant increase in SMA and mastery compared to the delayed-treatment control condition, and for SMA, this effect still existed 6 months after the intervention. The increase in SMA among older people who received the bibliotherapy prevented a decline in well-being as expected, but only in the short-term. CONCLUSION: The current findings show that it is possible to counteract an age-related decline in well-being, even with only slight to moderate levels of frailty. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Cheap and easily accessible interventions, like the self-management bibliotherapy described in this article, may provide a useful addition to more traditional gerontological interventions.

Children in hospital: II. Reading therapy and children in hospital.

Following the survey of book and library services described in the first of these two articles (Health Libraries Review, 8, 210-219), a research project funded by BNB Research Fund in 1991 investigated the theory and practice of reading therapy with children in hospital. Hospital play staff had been identified as the therapists most commonly involved and a number of them were interviewed using advance notice questionnaires and structured discussion. The following aspects were investigated: definitions of reading therapy, children in hospital, the reading therapy process, materials used, evaluation, services to facilitate and promote reading therapy, training and the role of libraries and librarians. Recommendations relate to practice, to provision and listing of materials, to evaluation procedures and to training. The final conclusions relate to the role of librarians in the processes and development of reading therapy with children in hospital.

Promoting library resources in Age Concern day centres.

In this report, an experiment to test the effectiveness of library resources with frail elderly people is described. Four day centres run by Age Concern Leicester were selected: two which cater for mentally frail clients, one for physically frail but mentally active people, and one for those with a mental handicap. A series of group sessions using library resources was run by the librarian in each centre, and the results observed. Frail elderly people were found to be a potentially enthusiastic group of library users, with a special need for assistance in gaining access to resources. Guidelines for librarians planning similar sessions to promote their stock are presented.

Using books to prevent and treat adolescent chemical dependency.

This article presents strategies for using the bibliotherapeutic process to prevent and treat adolescent alcohol and drug abuse. Definitions, goals, and principles of bibliotherapy are overviewed. Synopses of several useful books that focus on chemical dependency are presented.