Enhancing Clinical Case Formulation: Theoretical and Practical Approaches for Mental Health Practitioners

Clinical formulation lies at the heart of how mental health professionals understand psychological distress. It is the application of a framework that cohesively integrates scientific knowledge with the symptoms of distress. In essence, it is the creation of order to what is often experienced as disorder. The aim of this book is to bring awareness to the theoretical and practical opportunities for mental health professionals that exists by using atypical information when adapting typical formulation models.

Each chapter reflects some variation in how formulation is defined, conceptualised and practiced, by using information that regularly materializes from professional encounters but often is omitted from the formulation of a particular presenting problem. Chapters on diet and exercise, sleep, spirituality, sexuality and meaning-making highlight how approaches to formulation can be extended to provide additional opportunities for intervention for the client and practitioner.

A professional encounter orientated in the manner proposed will generate a type of formulation that will raise interesting and testable hypotheses that can assist in understanding ‘stuck’ points in therapy, difficulties within the therapeutic relationship, low motivation or inability to engage in particular approaches and will assist in devising person-specific mental health interventions. This book will appeal to clinical psychologists and psychotherapists in practice and training.

Patrick Ryan has worked as a clinical psychologist for 23 years. He is the Director of Clinical Psychology and Head of the Department of Psychology at the University of Limerick, Ireland. A clinical practitioner, he remains involved in clinical training, research, supervision and mental health consultancy.