Group Counseling for People with Physical Disabilities.

Abstract

The origins of group work as applied to individuals with physical disabilities can be traced to the pioneering work of Joseph Pratt, a physician at the Massachusetts General Hospital, who, as early as 1905, used group methods to assist patients with tuberculosis (Gust, 1970; Miller, Wolfe, & Spiegel, 1975). Upon noticing the role group members played in positively affecting one another's emotional adjustment to their illnesses, Pratt later expanded his work to include patients with other chronic illnesses (Durkin, 1972). Pratt's approach valued two e:.:omponents embedded in group methods-support and inspiration-as being of particular importance in light of the feelings of depression and isolation often associated with long-term disabling conditions.