Dual Diagnosis in Substance Abuse

Dual diagnosis has been a major focus in mental health care in recent years. Substance abuse occurring with any other psychopathology qualifies a patient for a dual diagnosis or multiple diagnosis. Treatment facilities have used this "new" concept to justify special treatment approaches and dual diagnosis units. Authors are writing about the biopsychosocial model of psychopathology as if it were a new discovery. The disease concept of addiction has been more clearly defined and accepted. All of these currents have helped therapists focus on treating multiple factors in human beings with illnesses and have generated a large literature on holistic therapy. Drs Gold and Slaby have gathered review articles on various aspects of dual diagnoses in patients with substance abuse, all of which concentrate on the biopsychosocial aspects of patient care. The text has three main sections. The introduction discusses the concept of dual diagnosis and the role of genetics