Leading mental health experts gave a briefing on Tuesday to warn that a new edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), which is being revised now for publication in 2013, could devalue the seriousness of mental illness and label almost everyone as having some kind of disorder. Citing examples of new additions like "mild anxiety depression," "psychosis risk syndrome," and "temper dysregulation disorder," they said many people previously seen as perfectly healthy could in future be told they are ill. "It's leaking into normality. It is shrinking the pool of what is normal to a puddle," said Til Wykes of the Institute of Psychiatry at Kings College London. The DSM is published by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and contains descriptions, symptoms, and other criteria for diagnosing mental disorders. It is seen as the global diagnostic bible for the field of mental health medicine. Read more...
Citing examples of new additions like "mild anxiety depression," "psychosis risk syndrome," and "temper dysregulation disorder," they said many people previously seen as perfectly healthy could in future be told they are ill.
"It's leaking into normality. It is shrinking the pool of what is normal to a puddle," said Til Wykes of the Institute of Psychiatry at Kings College London.
The DSM is published by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and contains descriptions, symptoms, and other criteria for diagnosing mental disorders. It is seen as the global diagnostic bible for the field of mental health medicine.
Read more...
AAAARRRRGGGGHHHH!!!!!
Now I've gone and done it.
I lost track of the discussions as they got technical and I'm afraid I was never up to speed with them cos they weren't my concern. keep to the Fen Causeway
Thing to keep forefront in mind is the purpose of DSM. That purpose is not primarily standard diagnostic protocol. (Although I would not understate potential "savings," either financial or clinical, arising from automated reference to this particular source and other physiology encyclopedia.) It is standard billing protocol. At this point in the history of medical authority and industry and regardless of motives, nefarious or noble, ascribed to the editors' summary judgments of mental illnesses and pathology, ima point to the code. Each so-called syndrome and named disease catalogued in the DSM has a (alpha)numeric code. The code is the key that unlocks insurer payments for services and treatment rendered by a health care provider. The greater the number of codes, the greater the number of revenue therapeutic plans afforded medical professionals.
Being an American invention, DSM promotion and adoption by medical practice groups around the world is no trivial matter. Adoption and rejection entail acceptance by licensed authorities of social controls. Seeing this report, I immediately thought of DrMarketTrustee of course and also news that marco, iirc, captured some months ago about resistance to American models of mental illness. I cannot as yet relocate the comment. Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.
