Overview

General clinicians are called upon to conduct most forensic psychiatric examinations and give most forensic psychiatric testimony - yet often receive little or no training in forensic psychiatry, leaving them ill prepared to navigate its challenging ethical and often-perilous legal waters. This groundbreaking textbook fills that void. Both timely and informative, it is the first textbook designed and written primarily for the general clinician. Here, 26 recognized clinical and forensic experts introduce the forensic subjects that commonly arise in clinical practice or training. Unique in the literature, this outstanding collection comprises four main parts, with each chapter organized around case examples and followed by a review of key concepts, practical clinical guidelines, and references for more in depth exploration. Introduction - Organized psychiatry and forensic practice; the legal system and the distinctions between therapeutic and forensic roles; business aspects of starting a forensic practice, the role of the expert witness; the significant differences between the ethics of forensic and clinical psychiatry; the use of DSM in the courtroom (i.e., legal determinations hinge on relevant impairment and not on diagnostic category) the sharply contrasting roles of forensic and clinical evaluators; working with attorneys; Civil Litigation - The standard of care and psychiatric malpractice; civil competency; issues in conducting evaluations for personal injury litigation; personal injury claims of psychiatric harm; disability determinations; today's dramatic increase in labor and employment litigation; Criminal Justice - Performing competency (to stand trial) and sanity evaluations; using a combination of actuarial and clinical assessments when evaluating sexual offenders; Evaluating mental illness in correctional settings; managing the relationship between psychiatry and law enforcement, including mental health training, crisis negotiation, and fitness for duty; Special Topics - Accurate assessment of malingering; work with children and adolescents, where the forensic expert is the advocate for the best interests of the child instead of for either the defense or prosecution, as in adult cases; personal violence (including Tarasoff implications); using prediction instruments to determine dangerousness in our post-Daubert era; the evolving standard of expert psychological testimony. Also included is an invaluable study guide for use in teaching and studying, and in preparing for the forensic board examination.

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9781585620876

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Reviews

Simon and Gold have assembled a number of experts within the field of forensic psychiatry and psychology, capitalizing on each author's expertise to create an excellent text. Information presented within the text is applicable to all psychiatrists and the editors accomplish their goal of creating a book on forensic psychiatry that will allow all clinicians to address forensic issues intelligently with greater confidence. - The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, March 2006

Author Information

Robert I. Simon, M.D., is Clinical Professor of Psychiatry and Director of the Program in Psychiatry and Law at Georgetown University School of Medicine in Washington, D.C. He is also Chairman of the Department of Psychiatry at Suburban Hospital in Bethesda, Maryland. Liza H. Gold, M.D., is Clinical Associate Professor in the Program in Psychiatry and Law at Georgetown University School of Medicine in Washington, D.C. She has a private practice in Arlington, Virginia.

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