A Person-centered Approach to Diagnosis and Care for Bipolar Disorder and Alcoholism

Abstract

Person-centered Medicine proposes the whole person in context, as the center and goal of clinical care and public health. Person-centered Integrative Diagnosis (PID) is an emerging model for conceptualizing the process of clinical diagnosis and care implementing the vision and goals of person-centered medicine. Person-centered Integrative Diagnosis entails a broader and deeper notion of diagnosis, beyond the restricted concept of nosological diagnosis and intends to provide the informational basis for person-centered organization of health care. It involves the dynamic integration of both positive health and ill health and emphasizes the formulation of the health status through true partnership with interactive participation and engagement of clinicians, patients, and families using all relevant descriptive tools (categorization, dimensions, and narratives). The applicability of this model to chronic, complex comorbidity with emphasis on the recovery process and health restoration is particularly pertinent. This paper focuses on the applicability of the PID to the challenging comorbidity of bipolar disorder and alcoholism. The PID provides an integrated formulation of multiple complex problems as well as positive aspects of health and strengths that are key to formulating and implementing personalized treatment and recovery plans.