Difficulties with Diagnosis
Difficulties with Diagnosis
Issue 06 – September 2008
Key points
- There appears to be a continuum between what is deemed ‘psychotic’ and so-called normality, rather than distinct diagnostic categories.
- Unlike medical diagnosis in physical health, psychiatric diagnosis lacks clear physical markers (signs) and is reliant on what clients say and do (symptoms).
- Psychiatric diagnosis does not appear to reflect real or meaningful categories.
- Diagnosis of “schizophrenia” is a poor predictor of outcome (symptomatically and socially) and does not indicate response to specific psychiatric medications.