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PERSPECTIVES ON DISABILITY AND REHABILITATION
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Contesting Assumptions, Challenging Practice
To order this title, and for more information, click here
By
Karen Hammell, PhD, MSc, OT(C), DipCOT, Researcher and Writer, Saskatchewan, Canada
Reviews
Dr Hammell's book is a breath of fresh air. Books like this, that are extremely thought provoking and provide avenues of thinking that
are different and relevant, are rare. Her work indeed contests assumptions; assumptions about disability, rehabilitation, and our place
in understanding and working within our own contextualization of these concepts. It challenges those of us who "practise" in the area
of rehabilitation to delve to a depth of intellectual rigor that is rarely asked of us. We are not left wondering what to do with the
beliefs that have become inherent in our thoughts and actions are provided with many alternatives to the ways we approach and do our
work.
This book is an advanced scholarly treatise, with extensive background research woven into each paragraph and almost every sentence.
However, it is written with such clarity that it is accessible to all of us. Topics range from "Normality and the classification of difference"
to "Client-centred philosophy: exploring privilege and power". The level of challenge to us is exemplified in a sentence in the chapter
that addresses client-centred philosophy: "Ideologies of professionalism justify, legitimate and privilege professionals and reinforce
their power". the final section in the chapter is "Striving for non-disabling professionalism: the ethical dilemmas", which helps us
to further consider some of the salient issues of client-centred practice.
The book provides us with the opportunity to critically consider
our own biases and thoughts and gives us avenues of action to take that may be different from ones we have used previously. My suggestions
for readers of this review are: buy the book; read it carefully and thoroughly; think critically about your assumptions; confront the
underpinnings of your own practice; and debate the myriad of concepts with others for whom these ideas are relevant.
Sandi Spaulding
Canadian Journal of Occupational Therapy
Volume 74, 2007.
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