Modern psychiatry has navigated important advances with regard to meeting the needs of Psychiatric distress patients. A variety of pharmacotherapy’s and psychotherapies have been laid down to manage and understand these distressing symptoms. Despite these achievements psychiatry theory and practice have at times reach an impasse. Prevention has proven to be elusive, with Psychiatric health disease being more common. The diagnoses propose through diagnostic models and practices such as diagnostic labeling have not been yet linked to any sort of proved psychosocial or biological markers. Reliability in making a diagnosis has improved in the research arena, but practically it has proven to be a challenge.
The concept of using diagnostic labels in mental care health has been widely used norm of practice. Healthcare professional often assigns labels to patients to allow treatment and research process take place. This essay outlines how diagnostic labels have been widely been used in the mental care filed and analyses its usefulness in the overall health prognosis of the patients. Diagnostic labels have both positive and negative cons, however, this report outlines the negative impacts of the labels towards services offered by Psychiatric health care professionals in offering care to patients. Further, assessment on its effects towards health professionals has been sought, with regard to challenges facing them in their practice utilizing diagnostic labels.
Diagnostic labels have often been used to assist the clinicians and researchers in Psychiatric health to assume homogeneity under the underlying medical states irrespective of whether they have variability in terms of the symptoms. More clearly, diagnostic labels help to distinguish the patients through set defined boundaries, (American Psychiatric Association,2000). According to Widiger, Frances, Pincus, Davis& First (1990), three decades ago, they showed that diagnostic labeling was a convenient way of describing the patients which include their symptoms and the expected diagnosing steps. Further, Corrigan, (2007), indicated that diagnostic labels suggest an effective etiology and point towards specific interventions which are crucial in preventing further consequences of the disease.
Moreover, Psychiatric illness patients labeling, have often been regarded to be beneficial, as they enhance special protection for the patients. Patients with labeling tags often have preferential treatments at the health care facilities compared to other Psychiatric patients. Research findings undertaken have shown that accurate labeling of Psychiatric health may decrease the treatment delay among the young people, (Thompson, Issakidis & Hunt, 2008), and further enhances the accurateness of diagnosing and offering right treatment present in health care services, (Haller, Sanci, Samyer & Patton, 2009). Furthermore, studies undertaken by Wright& Jorm (2009), have indicated that labeling of Psychiatric health is associated with increased preferences of seeking help from the professional practitioner.
Despite these commendable contributions of Psychiatric health patients labeling, effects have been shown to impact some negative consequence son healthcare provision. Diagnosing patients having mental health labels describing their mental state has been shown to have negative impacts on the professionals working with them. This has been shown to have less effective treatment being delivered. The previous beliefs have outlaid that psychiatric diagnosis is often stigmatized and lead to negative evaluations from the external environment. Previous work practices have for a long time assumed that those working in Psychiatric health care are often immune to such beliefs. However, latest research findings published in the Journal of Clinical Psychology and Clinical behavior have suggested that these patients risk stigmatization within the wider society and in between the health care professionals, (Lam, Salkovaksi & Hogg, 2016).
Development of stigma has led to discrimination and interfering with individual functionality on the social and economic life. This has seen to impact on not fully participating in the treatment process undertaken by health professionals, (Green, Davis, Karshmer, Marsh, & Straight 2005). Mental health patient’s stigmatization offers a complex form of labeling individual different, negative judgmental evaluation by others, adverse reactions and increased emotional outcomes for the patients, (Green et al., 2005), this, in turn, affects the healthcare professional assistance limiting care services offered.
The norm of healthcare professionals using diagnostic labels in the treatment process has often led to the emergence of cues and stereotypes. Stigmas associated with this practice have been shown to have significant t damage on the utilization of health services. The impact generated extends to the family and caregivers, thus limiting the level of treatment processes, (Garand, Lingler, Conner & Dew, 2009).
A survey undertaken by Matsunag & Kitamura, (2016), labeling of schizophrenia, results indicated that this led to stigmatization towards care provided, thus indicating a critical review of optimizing education techniques among mental health professionals on mental illness so as to avoid such emerging stigmatizing attitudes.
Further critical reviews have shown that mental health professionals may ten dot focus on the diagnosis rather than the person. Diagnosis label can be termed negative if it focuses on the specific problem and downplaying positive attributes of the individual, (Antczak, 2011).Health care personnel’s may tend to selectively engage in information which tends to confirm the labeling while neglecting other important information. Further labeling tends to focus on the attitude of all or nothing diagnosis, the labeling of the patent behavior tend to be more categorical. A patient is viewed as having a mental disorder or not based on the set threshold diagnosis, (Heilter, 2012).
Furthermore, diagnostic labeling can offer more devastating forms of medical conditions such in the case of bipolar. Patients having this disorder have more vulnerability of developing stigma. Label with such conditions often evokes strong statements which might hinder treatment access. Other forms of schizophrenia and the bipolar disorder at maniac phase have shown to attract attention and evoke emotional and behavioral changes which cause suffering on the patients. Further patients having Psychiatric distress go through social disengagement and this proves to be a challenge in accessing care services.
The evidence portrayed signifies that labeling portends early forms o stigmatization on the patient and on the part of Psychiatric care. The process of labeling creates certain conditions which can exacerbate the care process. In a study among schizophrenia patients, patient labeling has been widely been a contentious issue on its effects on the patient, quality of life social life and mental care recovery process, (Thornicroft et al., 2009). Globally, schizophrenic patients have often been viewed negatively by the general public; attributes associated with negative perception include aggressive and un-predictive behavior. Coupling this trends with labeling tend to complicate the recovery process of this patients, (Wahl, 1997).
The utilization of Diagnosis and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders has been widely been used in assessing the management of mental health. This framework has provided clear mental health labels which were aimed at assisting to effect communication between the patient and the health service providers, (Evans et al., 2013). These labels provided the way diagnosis was made, treated and mental health research. However recent research has displayed glaring challenges in its utilization. There exist blurriness in the borderline created between the DSM, hence making the diagnostic label unclear. This process jeopardized care service offered as it can lead to misdiagnosis or over the treatment of a specific condition without taking into account individual characteristics, (American Psychiatric Association, 2013).
Thus with the long history of utilization, mental health labeling have been portrayed to have weakness and danger signals which hampers treatment processes. Mental health practitioners need to be skilled and professional in their practice. Recognizing the effects of diagnosing and the consequential effects on the care process are of essence towards the care services offered by them, (Johnstone, 2017). A mental health professional need to have an informed comprehensive and informative diagnosis devoid of mental diagnosis labeling as this can hamper their practice progress. This calls for mental health practitioners to practice competently within their scope of duty and perform skills and duties as stipulated accurately without having judgmental thoughts, (Timimi, 2014).
In conclusion, there is need for improvements of treatment processes for the patients and being aware of the diagnosis and the negatives impacts associated with diagnosis labeling on patients and effects on mental care practices. As observed from studies undertaken, diagnostic labels can be an obstacle in the treatment process of patients and affect the outcome. Further, they pose serious challenges on individual patient personality, as the labeling is often sticky and stigmatizes the patients and care process for mental health professionals. Rather than using diagnostic labeling in mental health care, adoption of bio-psycho-social factors on patient assessment is essential in understanding how patients progress. This helps improve treatment efficacy and reduce stigma related labels and eliminated unwarranted influence thus offering the best clinical judgments.
References
American Psychiatric Association (APA). (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.
American Psychiatric Association, & American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (revised 4th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.
American Psychiatric Association. Task Force on DSM-IV. (1991). DSM-IV options book: Work in progress (7/1/91). American Psychiatric Press.
Antczak, A. (2011). Advantages and disadvantages of diagnostic labeling: pros and cons of labelling people with clinical mental disorders. Yahoo Voices. https://voices.yahoo.com/advantages-disadvantages-diagnostic-labeling-10168987.htm
Corrigan, P. W. (2007). How clinical diagnosis might exacerbate the stigma of mental illness. Social Work, 52(1), 31-39.
Evans, S. C., Reed, G. M., Roberts, M. C., Esparza, P., Watts, A. D., Mendonca Correia, J., … & Saxena, S. (2013). Psychologists’ perspectives on the diagnostic classification of mental disorders: Results from the WHO-IUPsyS Global Survey. International Journal of Psychology, 48, 177–193.
Garand, L., Lingler, J. H., Conner, K. O., & Dew, M. A. (2009). Diagnostic labels, stigma, and participation in research related to dementia and mild cognitive impairment. Research in gerontological nursing, 2(2), 112-121.
Green, S., Davis, C., Karshmer, E., Marsh, P., & Straight, B. (2005). Living stigma: The impact of labeling, stereotyping, separation, status loss, and discrimination in the lives of individuals with disabilities and their families. Sociological Inquiry, 75(2), 197-215.
Haller, D. M., Sanci, L. A., Sawyer, S. M., & Patton, G. C. (2009). The identification of young people’s emotional distress: a study in primary care. Br J Gen Pract, 59(560), e61-e70.
Heitler, S. (2012). Psychological diagnosis: Dangerous, desirable, or both? How do labels hurt and how can they be helpful. Psychology Today.
Johnstone, L. (2017). Psychological formulation as an alternative to psychiatric diagnosis. Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 58(1), 30-46.
Lam, D. C., Salkovskis, P. M., & Hogg, L. I. (2016). ‘Judging a book by its cover’: An experimental study of the negative impact of a diagnosis of borderline personality disorder on clinicians’ judgements of uncomplicated panic disorder. British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 55(3), 253-268.
Matsunaga, A., & Kitamura, T. (2016). The effects of symptoms, diagnostic labels, and education in psychiatry on the stigmatization towards schizophrenia: a questionnaire survey among a lay population in Japan. Mental illness, 8(1).
Thompson, A., Issakidis, C., & Hunt, C. (2008). Delay to seek treatment for anxiety and mood disorders in an Australian clinical sample. Behaviour Change, 25(2), 71-84.
Thornicroft, G., Brohan, E., Rose, D., Sartorius, N., Leese, M., & INDIGO Study Group. (2009). Global pattern of experienced and anticipated discrimination against people with schizophrenia: a cross-sectional survey. The Lancet, 373(9661), 408-415.
Timimi, S. (2014). No more psychiatric labels: Why formal psychiatric diagnostic systems should be abolished. International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology, 14, 208-215.
Wahl, O. F. (1997). Media madness: Public images of mental illness. Rutgers University Press.
Widiger, T. A., Frances, A. J., Pincus, H. A., Davis, W. W., & First, M. B. (1991). Toward an empirical classification for the DSM-IV.. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 100(3), 280.
Wright, A., & Jorm, A. F. (2009). Labels used by young people to describe mental disorders: factors associated with their development. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 43(10), 946-955.
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