A significant transformation in mental health diagnoses may be occurring in the United States and, if implemented, may have a profound impact on the way that millions of individuals understand their difficulties and obtain treatment. Mental health practitioners have traditionally turned to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) to help them diagnose mental health disorders—including major depression, generalized anxiety disorder, and bipolar disorder—by using a standard checklist of symptoms and a certain time period limitation on how long an individual has experienced those symptoms in order to determine whether or not he/she meets the criteria for a mental health disorder. Today, however, many psychiatrists and researchers are beginning to argue that it is time to move beyond the checklists and create diagnoses that are more indicative of an individual’s experience of distress over time; .
Many individuals believe that moving away from diagnosing individuals with a mental health disorder based solely upon the criteria outlined in the DSM will create a more accurate diagnosis by eliminating the need to refer to a number of different mental health diagnoses, and instead referring to one central mental health diagnosis that has a number of components related to the individual’s total experience. This, in turn, should help to minimize the over-diagnosis of individuals suffering from mental illnesses, assist in identifying someone who meets the standards for treatment, and. Many individuals, however, remain skeptical that developing new diagnostic standards will only create additional chaos for everyone involved;
For most people, the first question of concern is, “Will being able to identify new mental health disorders allow me to receive the treatment I need more quickly, and with less stigma attached to it, as well as allow me to better understand how to find correct treatment for my issues?” The supporters say yes; they explain that newer and updated definitions of mental illness will allow clinicians to identify patients who are at an increased risk for developing mental health disorders before their symptoms progress other ways, assist in developing individualized treatment plans for those patients, and prevent people from becoming categorized as meeting or not meeting the criteria for a mental health disorder, depending on how they present on any given day.
Nevertheless, new definitions of mental disorders (i.e., criteria) that would be accepted by the majority of the clinical community will take multiple years to identify with consensus through research, develop appropriate use guidelines, and develop clinicians’ skills at using these new instruments/criteria appropriately.
Until the new definitions are available, mental health professionals encourage people not to worry about what diagnosis they have. Instead, mental health professionals want individuals to focus on how their symptoms impact their daily lives and how they can utilize these diagnoses as a guide to access the services that they need (therapy, medications, community support and reasonable accommodations in the work/school environment) instead of allowing their diagnosis to define who they are. As the science and research continue to evolve, mental health professionals have emphasized that compassion, listening, and collaborating will be equally important to the new definitions of mental illness.
Source: USA Today / KFF Health News – Major change may come in mental health diagnoses
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