Book reviews
own. If your are, then this is the best short practical book
on uveitis that I have come across. It is only 150 pages
long in an A5 format and is liberally illustrated in colour.
It has chapters on anterior, posterior and intermediate
uveitis, and there are also chapters on Sarcoidosis, Toxo-
plasmosis, Toxicariasis, Bechet’s disease and sympathetic
ophthalmia. In a separate chapter the more unusual dis-
eases of the chorioretina are covered—VKH syndrome,
APMPPE, PIC, Birdshot, cytomegalovirus and ARN, to
name but a few. If you have not the foggiest idea what
these are, then this is probably not the book for you. The
therapy sections are up to date and include coverage of
cytotoxic therapy and monoclonal anti-CD4 antibody.
The book emphasizes that the recognition of the differ-
ent patterns of uveitis is dependent primarily upon basic
clinical skills, and that investigations play a limited role
in the corroboration of the different entities.
STEPHEN J DOYLE
Market Surgery, Horwich and Manchester
Royal Eye Hospital
Adolescence: positive approaches for working with
young people. A Wheal. (181 pages, £14.95.) Russell
House Publishing Ltd, 1998. ISBN 1-898924-19-8.
It is regrettable that a ‘grunt’ response is typical of
adolescents. This age group poses communication
problems for even the most skilled interviewers. If
this strikes a familiar chord, then this little book will
help you. The foreword tells us that ‘It has been written
in consultation with young people and a wide variety of
professionals, including youth workers, teachers, care
workers, policy makers and police.’
The authors aim to increase understanding of the
changes that take place between the ages of 12 and
16 years and provide positive strategies to encourage
dialogue between adults and teenagers. In short clear
chapters, punctuated with bullet points, the writers sum-
marize what researchers and practitioners working
with young people have found of help: creating empathy,
building trust, ‘active’ listening and above all valuing
and respecting young people. There are sections on
body language—yours and theirs—conflict resolution
and methods of building self-esteem. Chapter headings
include ‘Health’, ‘Young Peoples Rights and the Law’
and ‘Working with Parents’.
This easy-to-handle paperback will help many profes-
sionals, parents and young people themselves. Research
shows that teenagers would like to share their worries
with adults, but somehow there are always blocks in the
way. We know that at this age most teenagers worry as
their bodies and feelings change, and as academic and
peer pressure increases. Researchers tell us that 68%
claim that they have been bullied at some stage in their
207
school career, and that one in four will experience their
parents divorcing. The UK has the highest under-16s
pregnancy rate in Europe, while teenage suicide is twice
as common as cancer. Is it not time we adults ask
‘Are there things we are doing that block young people
communicating with us?’. If we all read and applied the
common-sense advice given in this book it could result in
fewer troubled adolescents and fewer ‘grunt’ responses
to adults’ attempts at communication.
CHRIS DONOVAN
GP in North London
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The good research guide for small-scale social research
projects. M Denscombe. (247 pages, £12.99, paperback;
£40.00, hardback.) Open University Press, 1998. ISBN
0-335-19805-8, paperback; 0-335-199806-6, hardback.
All healthcare workers need to know about research
methods. A small number may well find themselves
involved in research projects, either collecting data for
someone else’s research or perhaps even acting as a
primary investigator. For most, research happens else-
where, but research reports in the literature have to be
understood by everyone; this is still in addition to
the sensitive evaluation of the literature often being done
by others and published in digest form. It is invaluable to
be able to turn to the original research and understand
what really went on, so the need to have some under-
standing of research methods lies with us all.
This book is a useful introductory text aimed at
first-time researchers. Perhaps its main strength lies in
the clear and straightforward language used. Also, it is
very clear in explaining concepts in terms of the essential
issues about which a researcher must make choices.
There is a brief summary of the merits and limitations
of the methodologies presented and a useful checklist
to remind the reader of the key issues that they must
consider at each stage of their research.
This guide offers an overview of a range of research
methods useful in social science. Naturally, qualitative
methods take their proper place, as well as the better
known quantitative approaches. The reader is never
overwhelmed with complex arguments so enjoyed by
many methodologists. It could be invaluable as a friendly
readable guide to help a registrar in training get a small
investigation under way as an educational exercise; even
so, it is unlikely to be adequate as a sole source once
the novice researcher actually starts on a real research
project. It would, however, get them on their way.
MARK KANE
Osteopath and Senior Lecturer at Centre for
Community Care and Primary Health,
University of Westminster