title: Group work with emphysema patients.
abstract: This article describes group work services to ambulatory emphysema patients in a community hospital. The group is viewed as an essential component in the treatment of patients with a chronically disabling illness. These patients experience devastating changes in their lives in the community, in the world of work, and in their families. Physical and respiratory therapy and medication comprise the medical treatment, group work provides the peer support necessary for coping with the disease in a way as to assist with maintaining health and improving the quality of life.
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D004646:Emphysema; D005260:Female; D006126:Group Processes; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D010379:Peer Group; D012917:Social Adjustment; D012947:Social Work