Brief Therapy and Managed Care: Readings for Contemporary Practice (Jossey Bass Social and Behavioral Science Series)

The Story

Managed-care systems - which emphasize efficiency, outcomes, and accountability - are rapidly becoming the standard in the health care industry. To succeed in these systems, clinicians must be prepared to target and achieve specific treatment goals. In Brief Therapy and Managed Care, Michael F. Hoyt shares his many years of experience as an expert clinician, researcher, and supervisor in one of the nation's largest HMOs to offer a wealth of illustrative case examples and practical information on how to provide more focused, time-sensitive mental-health services. In this timely resource book, comprising original chapters and carefully selected reprints, Hoyt presents guidelines for offering psychotherapy that is both conscientiously managed as well as appropriate and sensitive to the needs of different clients. The author offers an overview of the current field of brief psychotherapies and examines various issues that can advance or impede efficient treatment. Using numerous case examples, Hoyt describes several models of brief psychotherapy - solution-oriented, psychodynamic, cognitive-behavioral, transactional analytic, Ericksonian - that are well suited for improving quality while containing costs. In addition to therapy with individuals, he describes approaches for working with couples and conducting group therapy, and also addresses training and supervision issues. For those who are not yet practicing within a managed-care system, or who are and find themselves confronting various practical and ethical issues, the book contains a wealth of information organized in terms of a list of critical questions such as: What are the warning signals for knowing which companies to avoid? Whatare the key elements in an acceptable treatment plan? What can I expect as payment? What are my obligations if patients' needs exceed their insurance coverage? Brief Therapy and Managed Care also includes an extensive bibliography as well as directories for various training opportunities, professional associations, and managed-care organizations.