4 Reasons for Misdiagnosis by a Therapist

In medicine and psychology, misdiagnosis is sadly a part of the profession. Whether it’s a doctor trying to diagnose a disease or a psychologist trying to diagnose a mental disorder or mental illness, there are no foolproof tests for most conditions (contrary to most people’s beliefs). In medicine, we sometimes see physicians who intentionally misdiagnose a patient for financial gain. This is a horrible betrayal of a patient’s trust, and results in patients getting treatment they don’t need — which could even hurt their health. Do therapists ever misdiagnose someone with a mental disorder? And if so, why? Diagnosis — in both medicine and mental health — is not an exact science. Entire television shows have enjoyed successful runs due to this (e.g., House, MD). There is a lot of trial and error that goes with coming up with an accurate diagnosis. Most misdiagnosis is unintentional and done usually because the therapist doesn’t have all of the information about the patient’s symptoms. Or the symptoms follow a pattern indicative of two similar mental disorders. One common type of misdiagnosis is in bipolar disorder. Because most forms of bipolar disorder includes the presence or history of one or more major depressive episodes, bipolar disorder can be misdiagnosed as major depression. Upon further examination and over time, however, most clinicians can identify and correct these kinds of misdiagnosis. There are times, howeve...
Source: World of Psychology - Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Tags: Ethics & Morality General Mental Health and Wellness Psychotherapy Treatment Misdiagnosis misdiagnosis in mental health Source Type: blogs