Making the Diagnostic Assessment

TOOLS THAT FACILITATE THE ASSESSMENT PROCESS

By: SOPHIA F. DZIEGIELEWSKI

Few professionals would debate that the most commonly used and accepted sources of diagnostic criteria are the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5 ) and the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Edition (ICD-10 ) or the International Classification of Diseases(ICD-11).

Across the continents, especially in the United States, these books are considered reflective of the official nomenclature designed to better understand mental health phenomena and are used in most health-related facilities.

The DSM-5 (American Psychiatric Association [APA], 2013) is the most current version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association (APA), which replaced the DSM-IV-TR (APA, 2000).

Today, the DSM has similarities to the criteria listed in the ICD in terms of diagnostic codes and the billing categories; however, this was not always the case. In the late 1980s, it was not unusual to hear complaints from other clinicians related to having to use the ICD for clarity in billing while referring to the DSM for clarity of the diagnostic criteria.

Psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, and mental health technicians often complained about the lack of clarity and uniformity of criteria in both of these texts. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that later versions of these texts responded to the professional dissatisfaction over the disparity between the two texts, as well as the clarity of the diagnostic criteria.

To facilitate practice utility, the DSM-5, like its previous versions, serves as a crosswalk between the two books, utilizing the criteria from the DSM to facilitate forming the diagnostic impression and utilizing the ICD for billing. Balancing the use of these two books is essential in formulating a comprehensive diagnostic assessment. Use of these two books, clearly relating them to each other with their closely related criteria and descriptive classification systems, crosses all theoretical orientations.

Historically, most practitioners are knowledgeable about both books, but the DSM is often the focus and has gained the greatest popularity in the United States, making it the resource tool most often used by psychiatrists, psychologists, psychiatric nurses, social workers, and other mental health professionals.

References

SOPHIA F. DZIEGIELEWSK, 2015, DSM-5TM in Action, by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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