Posted by ed_uk on December 2, 2004, at 15:29:52
In reply to Re: The artificial nature of psychiatric diagnosis » ed_uk, posted by Larry Hoover on December 2, 2004, at 8:02:43
To Larry, Scott and everyone else,
I do believe that the DSM has its uses. I am not suggesting that we get rid of it! I do feel, however, that it is misunderstood by patients and professionals alike. In some cases it may do more harm than good. Each diagnosis describes a cluster of symptoms which often occur together, yet each diagnosis is not a specific disease. We could construct many other DSM diagnoses based on clusters of symptoms which tend to occur together. The DSM is only really useful to those who appreciate its inadequacies, many people do not. Misuse of the DSM may harm both individual patients and psychiatric research alike. Larry gave an excellent summary of some of the problems which we face.
Regards,
Ed.
poster:ed_uk
thread:422741
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20041201/msgs/423450.html