| Abstract | [Chapter overview]:
Chapter 7. Diagnosis and treatment: some
elementary considerations by Travis Gee provides
an introduction to assessment and diagnosis issues
for counsellors whose role has traditionally focused
on helping, assisting, and supporting people who
may have varying degrees of mental health or clinical
psychological issues. Following on ethics, and clinical supervision, this chapter places centre stage
professional mental health issues that counsellors
need to be aware of, but that have also tended to
be overlooked by many mainstream and popular
textbooks in the field. This chapter is of particular
relevance as it is written by a clinical psychologist and
statistician, and so provides a valuable introduction
to these approaches in clinical care for counselling
practitioners and students. This chapter builds on the previous chapters
of this textbook and challenges readers to grapple with
the politics of diagnosis and treatment by examining
ideas of impairment that may be linked to theories of
social deviance, among many other theories. Readers
are encouraged to dig deeper into their cognitive
abilities as they engage with the text, and to sit with
the ideas and concepts shared in this chapter. We
encourage continued critical thinking and reflexivity
on the part of the reader, and ask that you take these
ideas into discussions in groups and with colleagues.
We suggest that you examine the critical social issues
involved in diagnosis, as well as engage with the
content and logic processes suggested by the author. These issues are of great social importance,
and may place counselling professionals into political
hot seats as we become more aware of how our
professions are expected to police the boundaries
of the 'normal' verses the 'abnormal'. As the field of
counselling evolves and takes on more responsibility
in the mental health arena, we are increasingly
asked to become aware of what may have been the
traditional domains of psychology, clinical psychology,
clinical social work, and psychiatry. While the field
of counselling may highlight particular clinical
specialisations and approaches to client care,
in the real world of practice we are asked to work
collaboratively and in interdisciplinary teams with
other health professionals. |
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