R. Motschnig, L. Nykl. Open University Press price £28.99; pp 256 ISBN

9780335247288

At a time when there is an increasing emphasis on engaging with the whole person at the centre of healthcare – the patient – the publication of this book is most opportune for all healthcare practitioners. The authors come from the fields of education and psychotherapy respectively, with wide experience of the person-centred approach as originally developed by Carl Rogers.

The book aims to support the reader in '...the building of a flexible organised inner world in which mind, feeling and intuition are in frequent interchange with each other... [for]...this is the most meaningful and necessary investment each of us can make for our own and others' benefits'. To this end, the authors divide the book into sections considering theory, skills, practice and experiential learning.

The material in the book draws extensively on the work of many person-centred thinkers such as Martin Buber, Carl Rogers, and Godfrey Barrett-Lennard. Valuable sections are included on attentiveness, listening and sharing. Throughout the book, numerous practical scenarios are given accompanied by reflective exercises which are particularly valuable in that they are drawn from everyday situations in the family, or in settings where there is an educational component – highly relevant to many clinical situations. Helpful chapters are included devoted to applying listening skills to interpersonal dialogue and exploring ways of incorporating the person-centred approach into our ever-increasing volume of online communication.

Overall, as a study in how to become more fully actualised as a person in a professional relationship, how to support the person who is the patient, student, or family member, and how to adopt the person-centred approach as a way of becoming more fully human, this book will well reward the time taken to read and study it.