 "Photo: N/A")
May 2013 is an important date for the American Psychiatric Association; as the DSM-5 (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) will be published with amendments to current diagnosis criteria.
According to Kristin Croyle, assistant dean of the college of Social and Behavioral Sciences, the proposed changes are in a patient’s best interest and reflect current research and help psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, and counselors make the most accurate diagnosis.
While Frederick Ernst with a Ph. D. in psychology warns of 3rd party influence he has noticed in his 10 years as a practicing psychologist.
As with other areas in the medical field, insurance and pharmaceutical companies have an impact on the treatment and diagnosis of mental disorders.
“The number of people inappropriately on psychiatric drugs is staggering but this works well for the medical and pharmaceutical industries,” Ernst said.
Patients must have a clinical diagnosis based upon the DSM codes be covered by insurance. And with expanding new categories of mental disorders there is a diagnosis available for a wide range of symptoms.
“The medical establishment has taken hold of every conceivable personal problem and created a diagnostic entity to cover it. Without an official medical diagnosis, no insurance coverage for whatever is being brought to the attention of the professional,” professor of psychology Ernst said. “As a result, there is virtually no personal problem that could be brought to my attention that would not satisfy the diagnostic criteria for mental illness.”
More specifically, changes to the future manuscript include areas such as Asperger’s syndrome/Autism and binge eating/eating disorders and have been made available for public review and comments at DSM5.org.
To begin, the American Association of Psychology is considering reclassifying Asperger’s syndrome into a more general category under the autistic spectrum. Yet with the number of children diagnosed with autism on the rise, this may lead people to believe the disorder is increasing.
In reality, assistant dean of the college of Social and Behavioral Sciences Kristin Croyle said, “My understanding is that the increase in diagnosis of autistic spectrum disorders is mostly a function of the ongoing changing way that professionals view those disorders, so that children are being shifted from other disorders to autistic spectrum disorders. The actual incidence of autistic symptoms in the population is likely not dramatically different than it was 30 years ago.”
These proposed adjustments are shifting various diagnoses including schizophrenia to be more dimensional. Which means clinicians will now be able to take into account the severity of patient’s symptoms and acknowledge symptoms that do not fit perfectly into the diagnosis and this seems to be a good idea according to Croyle, who has been at UTPA for 8 years.
This is a step in the right direction according to Ernst, but he points out there have been many faults with the DSM. In the past homosexuality was a diagnosis.
He believes the focus has slowly drifted from serious mental disorders such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder to people unhappy with a temporary situation such as heart break. Medication can be a temporary solution; one must remember the medication does not treat the cause but rather the symptoms such as those produced by depression. Perhaps more helpful to these patients would be a class that teaches people coping skills.
For more information about the DSM-5 visit dsm-5.org.
Be the first to comment on this article!