The three approaches that medical professionals use to diagnose mental illness

The three approaches that medical professionals use to diagnose mental illness

In most cases, mental illness has not been considered a severe illness, yet people have suffered immensely. People with mental illnesses should be diagnosed to help handle the rising cases of individuals who suffer from the illness. Diagnosing people with mental illnesses helps medical professionals develop treatment procedures that were previously not available. Diagnosing mental illness helps change the way others treat people with the illness, especially those subjected to discrimination (Flood-Grady & Koenig Kellas, 2019). Having a diagnosis for people with mental illness makes communication between healthcare professionals easier, helping them understand an individual’s condition and come up with the appropriate way of helping them. However, diagnosing people with mental illness can also have its disadvantages. The people who receive mental illness diagnoses are prone to stigmatization from the community. Some diagnoses of mental illness are helpful than others. Those suffering from depression have open doors to treatment programs, while those who have borderline personality disorder have their credibility damaged, having their voice silenced.

The three approaches that medical professionals use to diagnose mental illness include dimensional, prototypical, and categorical approaches. Dimensional is best for diagnosing mental conditions because it provides medical professionals with more information concerning a specific mental disorder since it can accommodate lifetime data (Clark et al., 2017). The approach also offers standardized dimensional rating scales, the possibility of giving patient self-reports that play a significant role in the clinical process. The dimensional approach considers different personality features along several continuums, ensuring zero cases of misdiagnosing a particular mental condition. According to a spectrum, the dimensional approach aims to constitute the mental conditions symptomology rather than applying the dichotomous manner. With such an objective, the dimensional approach has proved more efficient and effective compared to the prototypical and categorical approaches.

 

References

Clark, L. A., Cuthbert, B., Lewis-Fernández, R., Narrow, W. E., & Reed, G. M. (2017). Three approaches to understanding and classifying mental disorders: ICD-11, DSM-5, and the National Institute of Mental Health’s Research Domain Criteria (RDoC). Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 18(2), 72-145.

Flood-Grady, E., & Koenig Kellas, J. (2019). Sense-making, socialization, and stigma: Exploring narratives told in families about mental illness. Health Communication, 34(6), 607-617.