ABSTRACT
As families come to indicate that they are considering termination it may be appropriate for the therapist to suggest that there be a follow-up appointment, which naturally contains the idea that the `next one' could be the `last one'. For some families, a set of follow-up appointments serves as a way of maintaining involvement in the therapeutic process, whereas for other families one follow-up appointment is exactly what it says ± a one-off appointment to see how things are going. Some therapists at the outset of therapy establish a contract in which it is agreed with the family beforehand that when the therapy sessions are deemed to have ®nished then there will be a followup appointment some months later. Different families and different contexts of therapy require different approaches from therapists and how follow-up appointments are arranged with a particular family would clearly need negotiation with them. Research has indicated that planned follow-up appointments at a three-month distance can have a productive therapeutic impact (Street and Downey 1996), particularly if it is presented as an integral part of the process during the initial meeting. Therefore it is bene®cial for therapists to indicate the value of such a follow-up.
