Overview

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is a devastating neurodegenerative disorder with a progressive and fatal course, with no known medical therapies that can reverse the disease or halt its progression. Palliative care is the mainstay of disease management, aimed at maximizing Quality Of Life (QOL) for the patient and caregiver. Clinicians caring for patients with ALS need to understand complex psychological issues in the patient and caregiver, including depression, anxiety, hopelessness, and wish for hastened death (physician-assisted suicide). They also need to confront the psychological implications of rapidly advancing genetic research, the impact of cognitive and behavioural dysfunction in a sizable minority of ALS patients, and caregiver burnout. Healthcare providers can optimize care by better understanding not only these factors, but by learning how to facilitate their management with problem-solving, coping techniques, and with psychologically-based approaches such as mindfulness and other non-pharmacological approaches aimed at maximizing QOL. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis: Understanding and Optimizing Quality of Life and Psychological Well-Being provides a detailed review and evaluation of ALS, presented in a comprehensive and integrated fashion. The book achieves this through detailed and up-to-date information about the current state of knowledge in this field. It also offers new insights regarding future directions for research. This book will provide clinicians with a comprehensive description of the psychological aspects of ALS and their management, and incorporates chapters written by recognized scholars in their respective fields.

Full Product Details

Author:   Francesco Pagnini (Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Milan, Italy; Department of Psychology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA) ,  Zachary Simmons (Professor, Departments of Neurology and Humanities, Penn State Hershey Medical Center, Hershey, PA, USA)
Publisher:   Oxford University Press
Imprint:   Oxford University Press
Dimensions:   Width: 15.70cm , Height: 1.50cm , Length: 23.50cm
Weight:   0.452kg
ISBN:  

9780198757726

ISBN 10:   0198757727
Pages:   300
Publication Date:   08 March 2018
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   To order  
Stock availability from the supplier is unknown. We will order it for you and ship this item to you once it is received by us.

Table of Contents

1: Tamlyn J. Watermeyer and Laura H. Goldstein: Psychological research in ALS: Past, present and future 2: Vincenzo Zaccheo and Zachary Simmons: Quality of life in ALS: What is it, and how do we measure it? 3: Dorothee Lule, Albert C. Ludolph, and Andrea Kubler: Psychological morbidity in ALS: Depression, anxiety, hopelessness 4: Francesco Pagnini, Deborah Phillips, Eleonora Volpato, Paolo Banfi, and Ellen Langer: Mindfulness and mindlessness and ALS 5: Arianna Palmieri, Francesco Pagnini, and Chris Gibbons: Complementary and alternative medicines and ALS 6: Bryan J. Traynor and Adriano Chio: Genetic counselling: Psychological impact and concerns 7: Stephanie H. Felgoise and Michelle L. Dube: Resilience and coping strategies in ALS patients and caregivers 8: Sharon Abrahams and Christopher Crockford: Cognitive and behavioural dysfunction in ALS and its assessment 9: Tom Burke, Miriam Galvin, Sinead Maguire, Niall Pender, and Orla Hardiman: The impact of cognitive and behavioural change on quality of life of caregivers and patients with ALS and other neurological conditions 10: Anna Marconi: Neglected needs: Sexuality, intimacy, anger 11: Paul Wicks: They embrace you virtually : The internet as a tool for social support for people with ALS 12: Christopher D. Graham: Investigating the psychology of assistive device use in ALS: Suggestions for improving adherence and engagement 13: David Oliver: End of life: Wishes, values, and symptoms and their impact on quality of life and well-being 14: James A. Russell and Zachary Simmons: Hastened-death: Physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia in ALS 15: Jashelle Caga and Matthew C. Kiernan: Bulbar dysfunction in ALS: Psychological implications 16: Peggy Z. Shipley: ALS caregiver quality of life and psychological implications 17: Francesco Pagnini and Zachary Simmons: Providing holistic care for the individual with ALS: Research gaps and future directions

Reviews

I was impressed with this book. If you work with ALS patients, this is required reading. For others who work in palliative care, listening to how to best address the psychosocial aspects of what most regard as a clinically difficult condition may enable you to better manage similar issues in other patients who cross your path. * Roger Woodruff, International Association for Hospice and Palliative Care * International Association for Hospice and Palliative Cares Book of the month

Author Information

Francesco Pagnini is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology at the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart in Milan, Italy. He is also an Associate in the Department of Psychology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA. Zachary Simmons is a Professor in the Departments of Neurology and Humanities at Penn State Hershey Medical Center, Hershey, PA, USA.

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