If you have only £50 left in your library budget, buy this book. It is the best and most comprehensive textbook for the clinical management of schizophrenia that I have seen in a very long time. The attractive layout, exceptionally clear language and beautiful printing makes the book so easy and enjoyable to read that it could even be recommended for bedside reading. The deceptively user-friendly style disguises a wealth of information on evidence-based clinical practice, practical advice and thoughtful opinion where sufficient evidence is lacking. The text belies the adage that incomprehensibility is a sign of authority, since the authors convey complex aspects of diagnosing and managing schizophrenia in an easily accessible format suitable for a wide spectrum of mental health professionals.
The book covers all aspects of managing schizophrenia, discussing not only different stages of the illness but also special issues such as violence, schizophrenia in women and different systems of care in the developing and the developed world. There are very useful checklists, guidelines and diagrams, for both planning treatment and understanding biological aspects such as neuroreceptor binding affinities of antipsychotic drugs. One chapter covers the importance of the clinician—patient and clinician—carer relationships, not only in the illness in general but also during specific phases such as the prodrome. Clinicians in the UK continue to delay making and communicating the diagnosis of schizophrenia to patients and families, which can often cause unnecessary anguish and delay in treatment. This chapter advises clinicians how to handle and communicate uncertainty to patients and families, not necessarily by minimising the gravity of what might unfold. There are excellent chapters on childhood— and adolescent-onset schizophrenia, medical management of patients with schizophrenia, treating chronic schizophrenia and violence in the acute and chronic phases. The penultimate chapter is a series of first-person accounts. The chapters are all of a high standard and some, such as that on cognitive—behavioural therapy, are particularly good.
I can find no shortcomings in this book. Community mental health teams would be well advised to invest in it since it will be useful for clinicians from all disciplines and, given its up-to-date reference list, is unlikely to be superseded in the near future.
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