Humanities Homework Help

Please give a direct response to the posting below and cite anything you use in APA format. Remember this should be a friendly response.

The use of the DSM-5 manual was to assist clinicians with diagnosing their clients in a more effective manner. The symptoms located in their corresponding diagnosis criteria, “are intended to summarize characteristic syndromes of signs and symptoms that point to an underlying disorder with a characteristic developmental history, biological and environmental risk factors, neuropsychological and psychological correlates, and typical clinical course.” (American Psychiatric Association, 2013, p. 19). There are multiple strengths and limitations wen using the DSM-5. One strength of the DSM-5 would be its organizational structure. The organizational structure was implemented in order to provide more improved and flexible diagnostic perceptions for the next era of research (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). This structure will also assist clinicians with explaining to their patients the reasoning of why they received more than one diagnosis, and why they might have received another, or changed, diagnosis as time passes throughout the span of their lifetime. Another strength of the DSM- 5 would be that the manual includes the differences in the biology of both genders. The cause and expression of medical conditions are established for several diseases, which includes some mental disorders, as it relates to both men and women (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). This would be considered a strength due to the fact that illnesses can be influenced by the gender of an individual.

Even though there are many strengths of the DSM-5, there are also limitations. One limitation would be the technical use of the manual by court and legal professionals. The DSM- 5 was created in order to meet the needs of clinicians when it comes to the definition of mental disorder included in the manual. This is considered a limitation because there is possibility that the DSM-5 criteria used for forensic purposes could be misunderstood, and not used properly. Another limitation to the DSM-5 is that it, “does not provide treatment guidelines for any given disorder,” (American Psychiatric Association, 2013, p. 25) listed in the manual. This is a limitation because although it explains what the patient’s diagnosis is and what the symptoms of their diagnosis are, it does not explain to the patient how they are able to get better.

During my encounters with clinicians, from being a case worker, I have identified that the DSM-5 could be used after the assessment, or after an intake into a behavioral health program, for a client. The clinician will take the information obtained from the client regarding their symptoms, or struggles, and will search through the DSM-5 in order to identify what diagnosis, multiple or singular, the client contains. The first limitation of the DSM-5 listed above could be circumvented by using the manual for clinical purposes only, or by forensic professionals that are equipped to use the manual in order to avoid the misuse of the information listed within the manual. The second limitation listed above could be circumvented by ensuring that the clinician doing the assessment will be competent enough in their practice to provide the client with the proper treatment recommendations on their own based off of the information presented to them.

American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5^th ed.). Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Publishing .