ISEPP Demands Ethical Guidance on the DSM

WASHINGTON, Aug. 15, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The International Society for Ethical Psychology and Psychiatry (ISEPP), along with several sister agencies, are demanding ethical guidance from leading professional mental health member organizations regarding serious problems with the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders (DSM). Ever since its publication in 2013, mental health experts and international organizations have decried the DSM's lack of validity. Applying an invalid diagnostic system to people is harmful. Still, it continues to reign as the official diagnostic system and there has been no attempt to rectify this problem.

In an Open Letter sent Tuesday, August 15, 2017, ISEPP spelled out how this places mental health practitioners in an ethical double bind. They must knowingly use an invalid and potentially harmful manual to help people in need, as health insurance companies require a DSM diagnosis for services to be reimbursed. But if they abide by their ethical standards and refuse to use the manual, people in need will not be able use insurance benefits to afford services and they will go without help. Either choice will place the practitioner squarely in conflict with their prime ethical mandate of "do no harm."

ISEPP and its sister agencies look forward to a response.

Contact Chuck Ruby, Ph.D.
Executive Director
International Society for Ethical Psychology and Psychiatry 
301-646-6022
[email protected]

SOURCE International Society for Ethical Psychology and Psychiatry (ISEPP)