http://www.nami.org/Learn-More/Mental-Health-Conditions
This task is not asking you to investigate cognitive tests, it is asking you to do a little bit of research on HOW our students are diagnosed with Mental Health Conditions. The interesting part is how drastically different these two professions are! You are not required to be an expert on this topic, but investigate and share your findings. This will help you understand what parents go through when they are trying to get ANSWERS from medical professionals. It is very interesting and gives you a new appreciation for the process!
*FOCUS on only ONE diagnosis (Previously this task required doing this for different 6 diagnoses - Course developer changed it after difficulty was reported)
It says right at the top of the module that "This module will be one of the most confusing to understand" While teaching previous sections of this course, I had questions about this module so I contacted the course developer directly - so I want to share all of the information with you!
Module #5 Activity:
- First, examine the psychological tests from the Center for Psychological Studies.
- Read the descriptions carefully and choose words that you think will be cross-referenced in the DSM-V. I have given you a few resources above to get you started.
- The DSM-V is probably not available to you at your school and is not available online unless you want to buy it (it is very expensive). However, if you search a particular term such as “depression and the DSM-V” you can find information online. Alternatively, you can try the university library, which will have a copy in the reference section. The URL’s above provide standard information.
- Create a chart with two columns, one for psychology and one for psychiatry. This chart should be in depth and at least one page long.
- Focus on one disorder or disease that seems to have two different types of assessment, possibly names, and treatments.
- Post your chart, along with a one-page reflection on your thoughts about this entire process.
- Relate it to your practice, and how, as a teacher, you will learn to navigate the mental health system in order to support students.
- Respond to two of your classmates’ charts.
I ASKED the COURSE DEVELOPER
“Are you able to elaborate on what they should include on the in depth one page chart? Should they be listing multiple assessments or focus on one specifically and provide extensive detail? The chart should show (like the one below) the different ways a psychologist and psychiatrist would assessed depression for example.They should focus on one assessment for one specific diagnosis. If I use the (brief) example listed below in the chart, is this what you are looking for (with more in-depth information)?”
RESPONSE: Yes. this is what I am looking for.
In the DSM, they can choose from any of the following (suggested but not limited to): depression, anxiety, personality disorders, behaviour disorders, post traumatic stress, and eating disorders.
For the reflection part of the assignment, what I was looking for was conversations by the teachers on how the diagnosis differs and what that really means for their students. Also, if they read the comments written for each psychology test and for each DSM category, it will be interesting if they see similarities or differences in the statistics provided. Some categories have higher rates of boys while other have higher rates of girls.
The purpose of this assignment is to allow teachers to understand the documentation that they may see in a student’s OSR. The course developer was a former psychotherapist and always found this area to be confusing and wondered why the two professions could not just come up with ONE depression test. Also, she often saw a person be diagnosed with depression by one professional and not by the other. It just added more stress to an already stressful situation.
As teachers, how do we support parents when this happens (and I think it happens a lot) and how do we make sense out of diagnoses?
___________________________________________________________________
What I learned:
Peggy Blair is an example of a school board member who holds a position that is in direct connection with the exact and prefered process of how to support student mental health. (https://www.hwdsb.on.ca/about/seniorteam/)
HWDSB provides a website/resource list as a part of their special education plan to assist with families who need support in the area of their child's mental health (https://www.hwdsb.on.ca/elementary/supports/special-ed/#tabs-115)
HWDSB offers specifically mentioned special education services for students who qualify (https://www.hwdsb.on.ca/elementary/supports/special-ed/#tabs-113)
HWDSB actually employs a position called "psychoeducational Consultant" who is incharge of/carries out psychoeducational assessments of students (https://www.hwdsb.on.ca/wp-content/uploads/careers/Psychoeducational-Consultant-(Temporary).pdf)
There is a Board Psychologist position in which they are expected to/not limited to the assessment of students psychological state (https://www.hwdsb.on.ca/wp-content/uploads/careers/Manager-of-Psychological-Services-August-2019.pdf)
What is interesting that in order for the IPRC to recognize a students in the special education system, the parents to present a letter from the college of Psychologists (in Ontario)
A disheartening article on "the realities of special education" (https://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2016/08/31/464727159/mental-health-in-schools-a-hidden-crisis-affecting-millions-of-students)
All you need to know about anxiety and its diagnosis (https://www.healthline.com/health/anxiety-diagnosis#criteria)
21st Century norms and their impact on "the younger generations" (https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/resolution-not-conflict/201806/high-school-and-college-student-anxiety-why-the-epidemic)
The closest diagnosing practice difference I could find between "psychiatrist" and "psychologist" in regards to anxiety disorders (https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/anxiety/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20350967)
http://robynwaxmanphd.com/assessments-for-adhd-and-learning-disabilities/
Clear distinction between practices (https://www.psychology.org/resources/differences-between-psychology-and-psychiatry/#undefined)
My content response to the module material:
"Psychiatrists conduct research on a wide range of mental conditions and treatment approaches, and the field produces and periodically revises classification systems, including the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), that clinicians use as guides for diagnosis.
Although many types of mental health practitioners administer psychotherapy, practicing psychiatrists—who are trained as medical doctors—can also prescribe psychotropic medication as part of the treatment they provide" (https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/basics/psychiatry)
Using technology to "see" the brain as it works is not viable for diagnosing disorders in psychiatry. (https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/blog/think-act-be/201605/using-brain-scans-diagnose-mental-disorders)
There is a screening tool for child anxiety related disorder (http://www.midss.org/content/screen-child-anxiety-related-disorders-scared).
SCARED is a universal measurement tool (https://www.pediatricbipolar.pitt.edu/resources/instruments)
Canada utilities SCARED through the CPS (Canadian Paediatrics Society) (https://www.cps.ca/en/tools-outils/condition-specific-screening-tools-and-rating-scales)
Directory of Psychologists/Psychologist Services is available online for Canada (https://www.ementalhealth.ca/Toronto/Psychologists-and-Psychological-Associates/index.php?m=heading&ID=54)
Teachers are obligated by professional standards to consult healthcare experts within the school board if they believe a student may be suffering from a mental health illness (https://www.oct.ca/resources/advisories/mental-health)
Dr.Amy Cheung is a leading professional associated with the OCT and focuses on anxiety disorders in particular through the practice of American based standards/practices (https://www.oct.ca/about-the-college/2019-annual-meeting-of-members/profiles)Peggy Blair is an example of a school board member who holds a position that is in direct connection with the exact and prefered process of how to support student mental health. (https://www.hwdsb.on.ca/about/seniorteam/)
HWDSB provides a website/resource list as a part of their special education plan to assist with families who need support in the area of their child's mental health (https://www.hwdsb.on.ca/elementary/supports/special-ed/#tabs-115)
HWDSB offers specifically mentioned special education services for students who qualify (https://www.hwdsb.on.ca/elementary/supports/special-ed/#tabs-113)
HWDSB actually employs a position called "psychoeducational Consultant" who is incharge of/carries out psychoeducational assessments of students (https://www.hwdsb.on.ca/wp-content/uploads/careers/Psychoeducational-Consultant-(Temporary).pdf)
There is a Board Psychologist position in which they are expected to/not limited to the assessment of students psychological state (https://www.hwdsb.on.ca/wp-content/uploads/careers/Manager-of-Psychological-Services-August-2019.pdf)
What is interesting that in order for the IPRC to recognize a students in the special education system, the parents to present a letter from the college of Psychologists (in Ontario)
A disheartening article on "the realities of special education" (https://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2016/08/31/464727159/mental-health-in-schools-a-hidden-crisis-affecting-millions-of-students)
All you need to know about anxiety and its diagnosis (https://www.healthline.com/health/anxiety-diagnosis#criteria)
21st Century norms and their impact on "the younger generations" (https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/resolution-not-conflict/201806/high-school-and-college-student-anxiety-why-the-epidemic)
The closest diagnosing practice difference I could find between "psychiatrist" and "psychologist" in regards to anxiety disorders (https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/anxiety/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20350967)
http://robynwaxmanphd.com/assessments-for-adhd-and-learning-disabilities/
Clear distinction between practices (https://www.psychology.org/resources/differences-between-psychology-and-psychiatry/#undefined)
My content response to the module material:
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