As a close friend recently suffered spinal cord injury, I was interested in finding out all that I could about the rehabilitation process to help both myself, and my friend, cope with the challenges ahead. Whalley Hammell is an occupational therapist herself with seemingly vast experience. Her positive style and focus on the patient as the decision maker was a welcome change from the helplessness we all felt following the accident.
I have a basic biological background but there were still a few terms that had me reaching for a medical dictionary. This book is aimed at those working professionally with the patient in rehabilitation so it may not be suitable for someone who needs to know the basics following an SCI to a loved one. I found it useful as an objective view of the rehabilitation process and a useful guide as to what the future would be like.
Unlike books aimed at the survivor and their families which can tend to be patronising and presume the reader knows nothing, this book finds a middle ground between this and the medical textbooks which don't deal with the psychological or practical impact of the injury at all.