DSM-5(R) Casebook and Treatment Guide for Child Mental Health offers trainees and clinicians who provide mental health services to children and adolescents a concise but conceptually and clinically rich guide to the types of disorders commonly found in practice. The cases are either new or updated from the previous publication, which was designed as a child mental health casebook for DSM-IV-TR, and were chosen to illustrate advances in diagnosis and evidence-based assessment and treatment with DSM-5 in mind. For each case, commentaries are included from a child and adolescent psychiatrist and child psychologist (or another mental health professional), who review each vignette and address diagnostic formulation and treatment from both psychotherapeutic and psychopharmacologic perspectives, with attention to other modalities that might be important for clinical management. This panel approach allows for a diversity of perspectives and provides valuable, complementary insights into each case.
The book is structured in a logical, user-friendly way, with many features that facilitate and enhance learning: – Cases are divided into four sections, each with an introduction by the editors, who summarize and contextualize the information presented in that part, providing a framework for understanding and building bridges to the other sections.- The 29 case vignettes are fascinating, instructive, and diverse. The cases range from fairly clear diagnoses, to more complex presentations (such as when patients with comorbid conditions), to the most difficult cases (when the diagnosis is unclear, the patient has not responded to previous treatment, only limited evidence is available on the correct means of treatment, and/or the patient’s psychopathology occurs in the context of extreme psychosocial stressors).- The book’s final part addresses diagnostic and treatment decision making and includes two chapters on clinical and research issues in the diagnosis and treatment of child psychopathology.
The book’s cross-disciplinary approach makes it appropriate for clinicians and trainees from all disciplines who are involved in treating children and adolescents with mental health problems. DSM-5(R) Casebook and Treatment Guide for Child Mental Health is unparalleled in its engaging style, up-to-date information, and expert, evidence-based guidance in conceptualizing diagnosis and treatment.
