Title	Meaningful Care [electronic resource] : A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Meaning of Care for People with Mental Retardation / edited by Joop Stolk, Theo A. Boer, Ruth Seldenrijk
Imprint	Dordrecht : Springer Netherlands : Imprint: Springer, 2000
Connect to	http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-9516-2
Descript	XVI, 190 p. online resource

It is crucial for the quality of care of people with mental retardation that care providers experience their work as meaningful. A complexity, however, is the fact that this care is divided amongst a range of professions. This book addresses issues of meaning (meaning of care and meaning of life) from all the different professional perspectives involved. Such a multidisciplinary approach is unique and has never before been followed. The book contains the results of a series of interviews in which parents of people with mental retardation were asked what they conceive to be meaningful care. The results are placed in relation to experiences and conceptions of professional caregivers. Moreover, the study analyzes the cultural, philosophical, and theological significance of the concept, ̀meaningful care'. Finally, the book explores the relevance of this concept for practical professions such as medical care, social work, educational psychology, pedagogic counseling, and pastoral care. Scholarly depth is combined with experiential knowledge of professional practice. Hence, this book is an outstanding source of reflection for all those who work professionally with people with mental retardation

Section One โ{128}{148} Experience of Meaning from a Family Perspective -- 1. A Parentโ{128}{153}s Search for Meaning in Family Life -- 2. Parentsโ{128}{153} Experiences of Meaning -- Section Two โ{128}{148} Meaning, Worldview and Care -- 3. Meaning of Life and Meaning of Care: A Jewish Perspective -- 4. Meaning of Life and Meaning of Care: A Christian Perspective -- 5. Mental Retardation and the Quest for Meaning: Philosophical Remarks on โ{128}{156}The Meaning of Lifeโ{128}{157} in Modern Society -- Section Three โ{128}{148} Meaning in Medical Care -- 6. Meaning in Medical Care for People with Mental Retardation: Some Remarks from the Dutch Context -- 7. Medical Technique and our Coping with Suffering: Prenatal Diagnosis as an Example -- 8. Meaningfulness and Meaninglessness in Neonatology -- 9. Parentsโ{128}{153} View on the Prevention of Handicaps -- Section Four โ{128}{148} Experience of Meaning in Daily Care -- 10. Timeful Friends: Living with People with Mental Retardation -- 11. Experience of Meaning in Human Encounter -- 12. Experience of Meaning in Daily Care for People with Mental Retardation -- Index โ{128}{148} Names -- โ{128}{148} Subjects -- Contributors