December 13, 2011
An Open Letter and Petition sponsored by the Society for Humanistic =
Psychology (Division 32 of the American Psychological Association), in =
alliance with several other American Psychological Association =
Divisions, has attracted over 8000 signatures since launching on October =
22.
The Coalition for DSM-5 Reform is calling on the American Psychiatric =
Association to submit its draft proposals for new categories and =
criteria for DSM-5 to independent scientific scrutiny.
More than 30 mental health professional bodies are endorsing the Open =
Letter which is highly critical of many of the draft criteria and =
categories being proposed for the revision of DSM-IV by the 13 American =
Psychiatric Association DSM-5 Work Groups.
Alarmed by the potential dangers they see in many of the draft proposals =
released in May 2011 for a second stakeholder review and comment period, =
the petition sponsors are inviting mental health professionals and =
mental health organizations to sign up in support of a six page Open =
Letter to the DSM-5 Development Task Force.
Of particular concern to the Sponsors are:
(1) The lowering of diagnostic thresholds, which may artificially =
inflate the prevalence of numerous disorders. By increasing the number =
of people who qualify for a diagnosis, DSM-5 may lead to the excessive =
medicalization and stigmatization of normative or transient distress.
(2) The potential consequences of lowered thresholds and new disorder =
categories on vulnerable populations such as children and the elderly. =
These populations are already at risk for excessive and inappropriate =
treatment with medications that have dangerous side effects. We are =
particularly concerned about the overuse of medications for "Attenuated =
Psychosis Syndrome," "Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder," "Mild =
Neurocognitive Disorder," Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, and =
Generalized Anxiety Disorder.
(3) The lack of scientific evidence substantiating many of these new =
proposals.
The American Psychiatric Association has scheduled a third and final =
stakeholder review for two months in early 2012, with the next version =
of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders scheduled =
for publication in May 2013.=20
When the third and final draft has been published, a notice and links =
will be posted on my sites with instructions on how to register with the =
DSM-5 Development site for submitting comment to the Task Force and 13 =
work groups. =20
According to Darrel Kupfer, Vice-Chair of the DSM-5 Task Force, the =
specific diagnostic categories that received the most feedback in the =
second public review of draft proposals, earlier this year, were sexual =
and gender identity disorders, followed closely by somatic symptom =
disorders and anxiety disorders.
Today, the British Psychological Society (BPS) has issued a statement =
encouraging its members to read and sign up to the Coalition for DSM-5 =
Reform's petition.
http://www.bps.org.uk/news/society-issues-statement-response-dsm-5
Society issues statement in response to DSM-5
The Society has today (13 December 2011) released a statement expressing =
concerns regarding the proposed revisions of the Diagnostic and =
Statistical Manual (DSM) of the American Psychiatric Association, which =
is one the main internationally-used classification systems for =
diagnosis of people with mental health problems in clinical settings and =
for research trials.
The Society for Humanistic Psychology (Division 32) of the American =
Psychological Association (APA) has recently published an open letter to =
the DSM-5 taskforce raising a number of concerns about the draft =
revisions proposed for DSM-5 and citing a number of issues raised =
previously by the BPS.
In its statement today, the Society shares the concerns expressed in the =
open letter from the Society of Humanistic Psychology (Division 32) of =
the APA and encourages members of the Society to read the letter =
themselves and consider signing the petition.
David Murphy, Chair of the Society's Professional Practice Board said:
"The Society recognises that a range of views exist amongst =
psychologists, and other mental health professionals, regarding the =
validity and usefulness of diagnostic frameworks in general and the =
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric =
Association, in particular.
"However, there is a widespread consensus amongst our members that some =
of the changes proposed for the new framework could lead to potentially =
stigmatizing medical labels being inappropriately applied to normal =
experiences and also to the unnecessary use of potentially harmful =
interventions.
"We therefore urge the DSM 5 taskforce to consider seriously all the =
issues that have been raised and we would echo the American =
Psychological Association's call for the taskforce to adhere to an open =
transparent process based on the best available science and in the best =
interest of the public".
You can read the Society statement in full online here:=20
http://www.bps.org.uk/news/society-issues-statement-response-dsm-5
PDF on the BPS site here: http://tinyurl.com/BPSstatementDSM512-12-11=20
Or read text version here, on my site: http://wp.me/pKrrB-1sa
References:
1] DSM-5 Development site: http://www.dsm5.org/Pages/Default.aspx
2] Somatic Symptoms Disorders current proposals: =
http://www.dsm5.org/ProposedRevision/Pages/SomaticSymptomDisorders.aspx
3] DSM-5 Timeline: http://www.dsm5.org/about/Pages/Timeline.aspx
4] Coalition for DSM-5 Reform website: http://dsm5-reform.com/
5] Petition for mental health professionals can be signed here: =
http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/dsm5/
6] Dr Allen Frances MD, Chair, DSM-IV Task Force, blogs on DSM-5 on =
"Psychology Today": http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/dsm5-in-distress
7] Updates and developments on the Coalition for DSM-5 Reform's =
petition: http://dsm5watch.wordpress.com/coalition-for-dsm-5-reform/
8] Media coverage for Coalition for DSM-5 Reform's petition: =
http://dsm5watch.wordpress.com/coalition-for-dsm-5-reform/2/
Suzy Chapman
_____________________
http://dsm5watch.wordpress.com
http://meagenda.wordpress.com
http://www.facebook.com/MEagenda
http://twitter.com/MEagenda
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