Transcending Bias in Diagnosis and Treatment for Women with Serious Mental Illness

Abstract

This article includes alternative approaches to current psychiatric diagnosis and treatment of women with serious mental illness (SMI) applying the theory of intersectionality and a trauma- informed perspective. We will discuss how these perspectives enriched the work of our mental health treatment team and reduced bias, stigma, and limitations associated with traditional diagnoses. Two vignettes are presented to illuminate the importance of our treatment team's interpretations of “psychotic symptoms” as meaningful communications. We will explore how interdisciplinary collaborations enabled us to work in an empowering framework in these clinical encounters. We will also examine the impact of race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, gender, immigration and severe child abuse in these cases. Finally, we will discuss the value of multimodal treatment used by our treatment team as a promising approach to begin the integrative process of healing for women with serious mental illness.

KEYWORDS:

• childhood trauma
• serious mental illness
• psychosis
• intersectionality
• integrative therapies