Is Psychosis a Diagnosis? No. Psychosis is like fever—a very important symptom. When a person has a fever, it could be from a virus in the respiratory system or a bacterial infection of the urinary tract. These are two very different causes of fever and each cause requires different treatments. The reduction of fever is one way to know the condition has been addressed properly. While we understand less about the three-pound “universe” that is the human brain than we do about infectious disease, the same broad principles apply. The goal of a comprehensive evaluation is to determine if there is an underlying, reversible medical cause of the condition and—if there is none—to determine the psychiatric diagnosis. After the symptoms, the associated history and relevant workup have been put into a diagnostic framework, the next step is to develop a collaborative and comprehensive plan with the person to address the symptoms in the context of this diagnosis. A comprehensive plan attends to the person interests and strengths and looks to school, work and relationships as the person’s goals dictate.
Posted on: Tue, 01 Oct 2013 20:00:00 +0000