1. Mental disorder
 “syndrome characterized by clinically significant disturbance
in an individual’s cognition, emotion regulation, or behavior
that reflects a dysfunction in the psychological, biological, or
developmental processes underlying mental functioning” (p.
20)
 Almost half of all Americans (46.4%) will meet the criteria for a
mental, emotional, or behavioral disorder sometime during their lives
 The various disorders are catalogued and described in the Diagnostic
and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM).
 standard resource for clinical diagnosis in this country. The first edition
of the DSM came out in 1952 and has undergone many revisions during
the last 50 years.

2. Purposes of diagnosis
 Defines categories to give structure to research
 Promotes communication among professionals
 Reimbursement for 3rd party payers
 Provides guideline for decisions about intervention
 The diagnostic categories enable social workers to
help clients, and possibly also their families, learn
about the nature of the person’s problems.

3. DSM and Social Work
 Preeminence of medical profession
 State licensing exams
 Social Workers in MH settings
 social workers should be able to recognize the symptoms of
possible disorders in their clients and appropriately refer
them for treatment services.
 Proliferation of DSM resources
 Promotes status

4. How could mental disorders be
classified?
 Etiology
 Continuums

5.  Clinical Disorders
 Adjustment Disorders
Primary

6. +
Adjustment Disorders
 within 3 mos of stressor
 once stressor and its consequences end, symptoms must not
persist longer than additional 6 mos
 either symptoms:
 distress that markedly exceeds what would normally be expected
from such a stressor
 materially impaired job, academic or social functioning

7.  309.0 w/Depressed Mood
 309.24 w/Anxiety
 309.28 w/Mixed anxiety and depressed mood
 309.3 w/Disturbance of conduct
 309.4 w/mixed disturbance of emotions and conduct
 309.9 unspecified
 Acute or chronic
Adjustment Disorders, cont.

8. +
Additional codes that are primary
 No diagnosis or condition V71.09
 Diagnosis or condition deferred 799.9

9.  diagnosis first for current condition
 least restrictive
 when uncertain “provisional”
 severity criteria
 hierarchical principles
 medical conditions and substance use disorders preempt
 most pervasive disorders
Guidelines

10. +
Secondary
 disorders with more of a constitutional basis
 includes the personality disorders and mental retardation.
 chronic conditions
 If a personality disorder is the most important reason for the client’s
seeking evaluation, the social worker should add the term “principal
diagnosis.”

11. +
Medical conditions
 general medical conditions
 source of the information should also be listed here