When I first moved to Singapore from the UK in 2008. I was keen to understand what, if any differences there were applying therapeutic models in the Asian cultural context. Many trainers seemed surprised by my question, perhaps offered some snippets of advice or the occasional paper to read but I was mostly left feeling unsatisfied by the lack of information.
After working here for many years and meeting amazing colleagues with a similar wish to work and help inspire others to work in a culturally sensitive way, Solution Focused Practice in Asia was born.
“Offering case examples from the fields of therapy, supervision, education, coaching and organizational consulting… it demonstrates the usefulness of the solution focused approach in the Asian context. Its aim is to stimulate the curious and inspire the converted. The examples offer creative ways in which solution focused practice can be used with the hope that practitioners will give the practice serious consideration as a viable, evidence-based approach.”
Edited book and authored book chapters
Hogan, D., Hogan, D., Tuomola, J. & Yeo, A.K.L (Eds). (2017). Solution focused practice in Asia. Abingdon, UK: Routledge.
Tuomola, J. (2017). Introduction to solution focused practice in therapeutic settings in Asia. In D. Hogan, D. Hogan, J. Tuomola & A.K.L. Yeo (Eds). Solution focused practice in Asia (pp9-13). Abingdon, UK: Routledge.
Tuomola, J. & Lee, Y.P. (2017). From helpless and hopeless to empowerment and recovery: Using solution focused brief therapy with clients with psychosis. In D. Hogan, D. Hogan, J. Tuomola & A.K.L. Yeo (Eds). Solution focused practice in Asia (pp36-40). Abingdon, UK: Routledge.
Tuomola, J. (2017). From the blind leading the blind to leading from one step behind: Experiences with running a solution focused supervision group for case managers. In D. Hogan, D. Hogan, J. Tuomola & A.K.L. Yeo (Eds). Solution focused practice in Asia (pp90-94). Abingdon, UK: Routledge.
Research Articles in Peer Reviewed Journals (some published under my maiden name of Powis)
Ee, J.P & Tuomola, J. (2016). Experiences of married men with HIV during the early phase of diagnosis within the context of mandatory disclosure in Singapore: An interpretative phenomenological analysis study. Journal of HIV/AIDS and Social Sciences, 1-21.
Tuomola, J., Soon, J.Y. , Fisher, P. & Yap, P. (2016). Lived experience of caregivers of persons with dementia and the impact on their sense of self: A qualitative study in Singapore. Journal of Cross Cultural Gerontology. 31(2), 157-72.
Tuomola, J & Chew, K. (2015, March). Life after SFBT: What factors affect whether students of solution focused brief therapy go on to practise the approach? Presentation at the 5th ASEAN Union of Psychological Socities Congress, Singapore. Retrieved from: http://www.arups2015.org/wp-content/uploads/ARUPS2015-Abstract-Book.pdf
Especkerman, J.F. & Tuomola, J. (2014, March). Understanding experiences of caregivers of adolescents with an intellectual disability and a mental illness: Initial findings in a Singaporean sample. Presentation at The Asian Conference on Psychology and the Behavioral Sciences, Osaka, Japan.
Tuomola, J., Games, N., Soh, S., & Ing, L. (2012, August). Solution focused research in Asia – What works? Presentation at the 4th Asia Pacific Solution Focused Therapy Conference, Singapore.
Thompson, A.R., Powis, J. & Carradice, A. (2008). Community psychiatric nurses’ experience of working with people who engage in deliberate self-harm. International Journal of Mental Health Nursing, 17(3), 153-161.
Hamill L., & Powis J. (2008). Audit of mental health promotion in primary care. Primhe: Primary Mental Health Care and Education. In Progress in Neurology and Psychiatry, 12(4), 28-31.
Powis, J., Thompson, A.R., & Carradice, A. (2005). Working with people who engage in deliberate self-harm: The experience of community mental health nurses. Poster Presentation at The British Psychological Society Quinquennial Conference, Manchester.
Graham, K.S., Patterson, K., Powis, J., Drake, J. & Hodges, J.R. (2002). Multiple inputs to episodic memory: Words tell another story. Neuropsychology, 16(3), 380-389.
Garrard, P., Lambon-Ralph, M.A., Watson, P.C., Powis, J., Patterson, K. & Hodges, J.R. (2001). Longitudinal profiles of semantic impairment for living and nonliving concepts in dementia of Alzheimer’s type. Cognitive Neuroscience, 13(7), 892-909.
Magazine Articles
Kulttuurishokki Uutis Sisu, November 2011, p16-17. Dr Jane Tuomola (Magazine of the Finnish Association of Singapore)
Coping with Culture Shock The BEAM (Official Magazine of the British Association). October 2011, p33. Dr Jane Tuomola
Post Natal Depression: What is it and what can you do to recover? Mother and Child Centre Singapore Resource List. 2010. Dr Jane Tuomola
Culture Shock: Grieving the loss of an old life and embracing a new start. Expat Living Kids Guide 2010, p44-45. Dr Jane Tuomola.
Sad in Singapore? The BEAM (Official Magazine of the British Association). July/August 2009, p19. Dr Jane Tuomola.