Solution Focused Practice in End-of-Life and Grief Counseling » (New Edition)

Joel Simon has 30 years of experience as a therapist and 17 years of experience as a solution-focused practitioner and trainer. In 2002, he co-founded the Solution Focused Brief Therapy Association (www.sfbta.org) and serves on their Board of Directors. He is the chair of the 2009 conference, to be held in Albany in November 2009. From 2005-2008, he was the Director of Social Work and Support Services for the Hospice of Orange and Sullivan Counties, where he offered SFBT training. He is author of numerous SFT articles and publications.

"[T]his is a book about possibilities-not finalities...about all the different ways that people deal with loss and bereavement and how solution focused brief therapy can be helpful in making sense of the experience that people go through when facing death."

--Harry Korman, MD

Solution focused practice challenges the conventional approach to bereavement counseling by emphasizing solution building over simple problem-solving. Joel Simon, with over 16 years of experience in the field, demonstrates how this therapy can help clients think of possibilities, rather than limitations, when facing death or the loss of a loved one.

This book presents a general overview of solution focused practice, tools, and methodologies for practitioners. Simon also provides real-life vignettes and verbatim transcripts from actual patients in end-of-life or bereavement counseling. This book provides insight into the philosophy and practice of solution focused therapy, as applied to clients with life-limiting conditions and their loved ones.

Key topics discussed:

• The use of language in solution focused practice: theory, meaning making, and the role of emotions
  
• Tools of solution-building, with questions, troubleshooting guidelines, and tips for evaluating outcomes
  
• The distinction between problem-solving and solution-building
  
• Co-constructing goals with clients
  
• Applying solution focused principles to hospice, grief, and bereavement practice
  

This resource serves as an invaluable tool for social workers, hospice workers, psychologists, and other bereavement and grief-counseling professionals.

Doody Review Services

Reviewer:Marlene S. Foreman, BSN, MN(Hospice of Acadiana, Inc.)
Description:This book describes a short-term, to-the-point method of helping patients through the dying process and the family through grieving following a death. It focuses on self-help methods rather than on theory for understanding an individual's need for counseling.
Purpose:The purpose is to help the individual move on with life rather than staying in counseling for lengthy periods focusing on the past. The author states that this book is "about hope and growth in the face of death and loss." This book is worthy of the attention of all counselors in hospice and palliative care, as well as other fields.
Audience:Written for counselors in the field of hospice and palliative care or anyone dealing with individuals suffering from grief or loss, the book would be helpful for social workers and bereavement counselors. The author believes that persons are capable of healing themselves if given proper tools and guidance. He has spent 17 years practicing solution focused counseling.
Features:The book uses a variety of ways to cover the topics. It begins with a history of hospice and conversations with "Joel" and "Dan." Case studies illuminate what is meant by various issues and counseling dilemmas. The author explains the meaning behind language function, the individual strengths and resources that can be captured to aid healing, and methods of changing perspectives in counseling. This book provides a wealth of information in an easy to read format. The case studies help explain what it means to use this short-term approach to help individuals deal with grief.
Assessment:Although I have been a hospice nurse for almost 19 years, I am not a counselor. However, I will be able to use some of the information I learned here to assist my patients and my colleagues with issues encountered during the difficult time when patients are dying and families are struggling with realities. I will definitely share this book with our bereavement counselors and social workers.

Foreword ix

Preface xi

Acknowledgment xv

Part I Introduction 1

1 Hospice: History and Philosophy 3

Historical Antecedents 3

Hospice History in the 20th Century 5

Case Study 1 The Local Community Perspective 8

Case Study 2 The State and National Perspective 13

2 The Historical Context of Solution Focused Practice 23

Steve de Shazer 24

Insoo Kim Berg 27

Brief Family Therapy Center 27

Solution Focus and Orange County, New York 29

The Future of Solution Focus 32

Part II Principles and Practice of Solution Focus 35

3 Use of Language in Solution Focus 37

Theory 38

Meaning Making 41

Language-Games 46

The Role of Emotions in Counseling 48

4 Principles of Solution Building 51

Problem Solving vs. Solution Building 51

Problem Solving 52

Solution Building 55

Solution Focus Stance 58

Solution Focused Assumption 59

Brief vs. Short-Term Counseling 68

Co-Constructing Goals With Clinets 70

Customership: The Counseling Relationship 73

5 The Tools of Solution Building 75

Solution-Building Questions 76

Troubleshooting: Common Issues in Solution Focused Practice 95

Evaluating Outcomes: The Post-Discharge Survey 97

Proviso 104

Part III Applying Solution Focused Brief Practice to End-of-Life and Grief Counselling 105

6 Stories of Healing: Solution Focus and the Dying Patient 107

Life Review 107

Denial 108

Conclusion 125

7 Expect the Unexpected: Solution Focus with a Widowed Client 129

First Session 130

Second Sessions 136

8 The Other Women: Solution Focus with a Bereaved Family 141

9 Changing Perspectives: Solution Focus with a Bereaved Client 157

Session 1 157

Session 2 E.A.R.S. 170

Afterword: Eulogy 179

Reference 183

Index 187