Book Description

This second edition is a major revision and update of Rehabilitation and Disability: Psychosocial Case Studies. The role and function of the rehabilitation counselor is described relative to the principles and practices of case management in the vocational rehabilitation process. The first chapter describes landmark legislation that has ensured the human and civil rights of persons with disabilities. The author relates changes to those of the consumerism movement, as persons with disabilities move from passive recipients of services to active participants capable of steering their own future, choosing their jobs and environments. Assessment as a best practice has expanded from being agency-oriented to being person-oriented. In addition to the use of best practices, the author advocates the use of best values to serve as the decision-making foundation for the application of best practices. Values can be the standards that guide the entire rehabilitation service delivery process, including the formulation of objectives, the search for alternatives, and the choices among them. The goal is for the client to realize the American Dream. The first two parts of the text provide a person-based philosophy and a substantial knowledge base in case management, and the thirteen case studies in the third part allow the reader to investigate the use of best practices and best values in case management. An outstanding group of contributors was selected to author various chapters. Their collective achievements have included agency-executive leadership, university professorships and consultative activities at the state, national, and international levels. Each contributor, as well, has made significant scholarly contributions to the rehabilitation literature. While the text was developed primarily for use in graduate rehabilitation counseling programs, it has great utility for related academic programs in allied health, psychology, social sciences, and special education. The text, also, has practical value for in-service and short term training anywhere that the vocational rehabilitation process can be facilitated from a client-centered perspective.