Discussion: Video Report of Your Case Consultation: Presenting and Validating Diagnosis In this Discussion, you first present to your peers the case collaboration begun in Week 4. Note: You make this presentation individually—you do not present with your partner. Your colleagues then review your diagnosis for validity, recommending an evidence-based tool to use in your…
Week 6: Diagnosing Depressive and Bipolar Disorders Diagnosing a depression is one of the most common—and yet most complex—differential diagnoses a social worker may make. The word itself covers a wide range of variations of the illness from normal sadness to serious clinical depressions that might not present the same way. Clinical depression disorders can…
Discussion: Applying Differential Diagnosis to Depressive and Bipolar Disorders What is it truly like to have a mental illness? By considering clients’ lived experiences, a social worker becomes more empathetic and therefore better equipped to treat them. In this Discussion, you analyze a case study focused on a depressive disorder or bipolar disorder using the…
Discussion: Diagnosis of Anxiety and Obsessive Compulsive and Related Disorders Social workers take particular care when diagnosing anxiety due to its similarity to other conditions. In this Discussion, you carefully assess a client with anxiety disorder using the steps of differential diagnosis. You also recommend an intervention for treating the disorder. To prepare: Read…
Week 5: Anxiety Disorders, Obsessive Compulsive and Related Disorders, and Cultural Idioms of Illness Anxiety disorders and obsessive-compulsive disorders (OCD) have a devastating impact on an individual’s ability to live, work, and conduct relationships. These disorders are often harder to identify than other conditions. Difficulty in diagnosis is compounded by the fact that expressions of…
Week 4: Putting It All Together: Differential Diagnosis and Neurodevelopmental Disorders Clinicians often have to employ multiple skills simultaneously while engaging with clients. Not least among them are reflective listening, information gathering and sensitive questioning, recording key responses, observing for signs of syndromes, and identifying the chief complaints. This week you address the complex process…
Discussion: Assessing Suicide Risk As a social worker, you will likely at some point have a client with a positive suicide risk assessment. Many individuals with suicidal ideation also have a plan, and that plan may be imminent. Even when the risk is not urgent at a given moment, current research shows that most suicides…
Assignment: Conducting a Diagnostic Interview With a Mental Status Exam Before moving through diagnostic decision making, a social worker needs to conduct an interview that builds on a biopsychosocial assessment. New parts are added that clarify the timing, nature, and sequence of symptoms in the diagnostic interview. The Mental Status Exam (MSE) is a…
Discussion: Applying Differential Diagnosis to Neurodevelopmental Disorders Social work clinicians keep a wide focus on several potential syndromes, analyzing patterns of symptoms, risks, and environmental factors. Narrowing down from that wider focus happens naturally as they match the individual symptoms, behaviors, and risk factors against criteria A–E and other baseline information in the DSM-5. …
Week 2: Impact of the DSM-5: Organization, Development, Strengths, and Limitations Social work advocates for the biopsychosocial model of mental health and illness. Therefore, when making a diagnosis a social worker should always consider biological factors such as genetics, psychological factors such as personality and strengths, and social factors such as culture and environment. …