Clinical Practice in Psychiatry

Clinical Practice is Psychiatry

Psychological disorders are difficult to accurately diagnose because of the nature of the disorder. It is a mental, social and intellectual state as opposed to other illnesses that can be tested clinically. Psychological disorders have to be tested by observation and other non-clinical methods such as monitoring speech patterns and body language. This makes it difficult for the psychologists to have a fixed diagnosis pattern for their patents. The symptoms of mental illnesses vary and sometimes get mixed up in the patients. When conducting a diagnosis, the psychiatrist has to be keen to ensure that they do not give a wrong diagnosis. This is an indication that each case the psychiatrist handles is a source of data that they can utilize later. However, despite there being a wealth of resources regarding the mental health illnesses and the modes of treatment, when the cases get complicated, the information gathered previously is obsolete. The psychiatrist has to start from the drawing board before coming to a conclusion about the diagnosis. 

According to Bauer, the research practices conducted provide more information that is relevant in the diagnosis and treatment of mental health problems. As a result, the clinians need to refer to the information that has been published to establish the best possible treatment for their clients (Bauer, 2007). Using documented evidence also reduces the chances of misdiagnosis for the patients in the long run. There is always something new for the clinicians to learn when they refer to the documented evidence with regards to what they need to practice on. According to Bauer, there is need for the scientists to create, develop and implement new ideas in terms of research for the purpose of mental health diagnosis and treatment.

Evidence-based practice and practice-based evidence are two different concepts when it comes to treatment of mental illnesses. The practice based evidence sounds more practical but is difficult for the physicians to document. This means that when they have to use this method, people cannot find enough material to refer to when making a diagnosis. This is mainly because the documentation of the diagnosis process is not standard for all the patients and physicians. However, when using evidence based practice, the documentation is easier to make. The only challenge that comes with it is that the transfer of the knowledge through evidence based practice is not perfect. This makes the process of diagnosis just the same as when using other forms of diagnosis. Evidence based practice is unfortunately not well sheltered from bias. This means that the psychiatrist do not always go for the most unbiased evidence and this can skew the diagnosis process. They would be in a position to create a ranking of the evidence within their disposal by ensuring that they get to use and review the articles that are most beneficial to them.

When there is a stream of documentation that the psychiatrists have access to when making their diagnosis, the evidence that has ben previously documented come to light. However, this method is said to be flawed by many scientists because no experience in a psychiatric case is expected to be the same. This means that even with the documentation of the information based on evidence, it is not a fool-proof method of conducting diagnosis (Brendtro, Mitchell, & Doncaster, 2011). There is need for better methods of documenting and researching the mental illness conditions among the physicians. This means that the evidence put forth cannot be free of biases. The documentation may be skewed to the liking of the author and researcher. It may also be flawed if the details of the case are not well recorded and result in presentation of incomplete information.

Evidence-based practice in treatment of mental illnesses may be useful. This is because there is always documentation of the process as opposed to when practice-based evidence is used. There is need for more people to use practice-based evidence to develop treatment regimens for people with mental illnesses. This is because it will be documentation of a process that has been used and succeeded as a opposed to where the documentation is based on the treatment experience without proper follow up on how the diagnosis was conducted and treatment as well. The practice based evidence is often well researched and practical. The practice-based evidence is best for diagnosis when used together with evidence based practice to ensure that more loopholes are covered. The two modes of diagnosis and treatment, when used together utilize the experiences of the psychiatrist and the documented information put down by researchers to come to a conclusive diagnosis.

Evidence based practice and practice based evidence are both useful practices when diagnosing and prescribing treatment for mental illness. This means that the patients have been subjected to two diagnosis and treatment methods which improve the chances of success. The ability by the clinicians to be in a position to develop better treatment methods and achieve more success depends on how much investment is made on the research programs.

References

Bauer, R. M. (2007). Evidence-based practice in psychology: Implications for research and research training. Journal of Clinical Psychology.

Brendtro, L. K., Mitchell, L. M., & Doncaster, J. (2011). Practice-based evidence: Back to the future. Reclaiming Children and UYouth.