Medical Diagnosis vs. a Counselor's diagnosis

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When going through my diagnosis process, I saw two MD's, a PhD, and a LPC. My final diagnosis came from both the PhD and LPC, which wouldn't qualify as a true medical diagnosis.

Are there benefits/drawbacks from receiving a medical diagnosis, and having it filed in your medical records?

What do you mean by "medical diagnosis"? ASDs are usually diagnosed by mental health care professionals incorporating little, if any, medical examination.

I suppose what I am asking is - is there a difference in diagnosis from an MD vs a PhD (or other level of counselor)? And would it have any affect on the services that might be offered by a school or work-place?

Last edited by freddie_mercury on 24 Feb 2014, 5:04 pm, edited 1 time in total.

I believe that kind of things depend on the country you live on. My impression is that often, what matters is the structure you were involved with and the procedure you followed more than the titles of the individual assessors.

From what I understand, in the UK there is no such thing as an "official" diagnosis, but some people and organizations give more credit to a diagnosis obtained through the NHS (public health system) assessment procedures than to one obtained from a private mental health professional.

An MD normally wouldn't have the qualifications to diagnose autism. They'd also have to have education in other areas.

In the US, MDs tend to assess and diagnose young children, psychologists seem to take this over by the time kids reach school age. Licensed professionals can diagnose, but a lot of programs seem to try to control eligibility for services by requiring the supposedly more objective psychologist testing. Trouble is, determining the meaning of what they see is still the psychologists subjective opinion. So I'm not sure it's better. But it gives an illusion of fairness that people seem to demand.

I'm not quite sure what you are asking, but would imagine that the medical record would contain the diagnosis once you've reported it, regardless who made it.

Are you certain an ordinary pediatrician has the qualifications to pronounce a child "autistic"?

I find that hard to believe.

I can see them suspecting it and handing the kid off to a specialist, but to just do it on their own?

I have no experience in the area, but something doesn't sound right here.

The developmental pediatricians are the specialists who diagnose developmental problems including ASD. But primary care providers often diagnose and treat ADHD, which is a developmental problem.

There are a lot of things that don't seen right that are real. I try not to let myself get too caught up in what seems right, that becomes destructive.

That seems in line with my experience. We took my son to our primary care physician. He said that he though ADHD was a possibility, but was not going to make sort of diagnosis - sent us to a psychiatrist (PhD). But we later found out the hospital we went to is rather gun shy about offering any sort of diagnosis unless the patient falls on the severe side of the spectrum.

And I suppose it is still a bit unclear as to what I am asking. So please excuse the confusion. I know that a written diagnosis for a younger child, such as my son, is pertinent in terms of the arrangements made for him at school - but I didn't know if a written diagnosis (for myself) that shows up on my medical records would be reason enough for my employers to make certain considerations for me as an employee.

I am not trying to assert that aspergers is a disability - but just wondering since it is a diagnosable neurological condition, if employers are held accountable for my work environment in any sort of way (in the US).