Quote:
Originally Posted by ~Christina
Okay ... as much as the DSM-V can be annoying but it’s a necessary evil in many cases. Unlike physical problems that can be proven with blood work or other testing. Psych ? Well that goes more off of what we as patients tell /show our providers.
It’s also needed for billing .... but more so it’s also needed because insurance companies like to deny meds xyz.... but more in depth diagnosis our insurance companies can see that okay ABC was tried and wasn’t helpful so yes we need to okay med x
Doctors are not chained to the DSM, it’s a tool.
As patients say Dr Joe Blow tags us with something that just does not fit and could cause us problems down the road with anything from jobs to insurances
I got tagged BPD once IP , the IP Pdoc thought he was freaking God , I refused a Med because we didn’t discuss it , sorry I won’t just swallow something. Boom I got my bpd medal
Anyway my personal Pdoc and T were pretty pissed... they both were very particular about “ coding” me correctly .. 4-5 months later the whole tag of BPD was totally dismissed out of my records
So yes sometimes the DSM can be a pain but it’s the only guideline we have right now to help our Pdocs narrow things down, find that slot we most fit into. It allows us to get treatments and medications.
And getting treatment for our symptoms and struggles is really what it’s all about , right?
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I agree, Christina. In addition to the uses you have mentioned, it gives our health care providers some idea of the type of challenges we each deal with when we need to go from one provider to another. We can then each fill in the details, according to our own experiences..
While the story about the pdoc who refuses to possess a copy of the DSM may be a touch entertaining, I feel such a response is an irrational stance for any mental health professional to take, especially since the coding within the DSM is required for billing (in order for the pdoc to get paid). Admittedly, I hade a chuckle; yet, I imagine the pdoc has some purpose for the DSM and was exaggerating in order to relate his own misgivings about some of the classifications.
After many such discussions with many pdocs, both Harvard-educated and not, most have some misgivings about some aspects of any/every version of the DSM; yet, they also recognize the DSM is/can be very useful tool, as outlined by Christina.
Like so many things in life, the usefulness of the DSM in the practice of psychiatry isn't black or white.
