Schizophrenia A Practical Primer 2nd Edition

This second edition of Schizophrenia: A Practical Primer, includes decades of clinical and research experience in the field and helps readers understand what schizophrenia is and how it is managed.

Schizophrenia is a devastating illness that affects more than 50 million people worldwide. Written to help anyone who is faced with managing schizophrenia, whether as a clinician, patient, friend, or family member, this accessible book is an ideal first stop for practical, up-to-date information. It includes an overview of schizophrenia and provides answers to common questions that arise on different aspects of the illness, such as: diagnosis, pharmacological and psychotherapeutic management, treatment challenges and achieving recovery. Beyond these key issues, the book includes developments in the neurobiology of the illness, foreseeable developments and the history of schizophrenia. It also includes brief, realistic case vignettes adapted from clinical experience, and questions interspersed throughout the book to aid understanding.

This book is essential for professional trainee and early-career mental-health workers, such as psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, counselors and nurses, and is written to cover in a concise and accessible way what is of immediate and practical relevance to gain familiarity with schizophrenia.

Preface

Chapter 1        What is and is not schizophrenia?

Chapter 2        Assessment of schizophrenia

Chapter 3        Social determinants of health affecting assessment

Chapter 4        Schizophrenia, spirituality and religion  

Chapter 5        Putting together the (clinical) pieces

Chapter 6        Talking to patients and families

Chapter 7        Early intervention and prevention for schizophrenia

Chapter 8        Managing symptoms and preventing relapse: Pharmacological approach

Chapter 9        Psychosocial approaches to improve symptoms and functional outcomes

Chapter 10      Managing treatment-related complications

Chapter 11      Suboptimal treatment response

Chapter 12      Medication nonadherence 

Chapter 13      Managing decompensation and relapse

Chapter 14      Suicide and violence

Chapter 15      Achieving recovery

Chapter 16      History of schizophrenia

Chapter 17      Who gets schizophrenia and why?

Chapter 18      Neurobiology of schizophrenia

Chapter 19      What does the future hold?

Glossary of terms

Helpful Resources

Index