Good point! Yes, the ideal path that maximizes health outcomes would definitely involve testing for a disorder before treating it. However, given there are no externalities (such as a shortage of a particular treatment), a person should have the right to do whatever they wish to their body, including harming it. Requesting treatment before official diagnosis is beneficial in cases where the ailment is difficult to diagnose, stigmatized, and/or has a poor prognosis without rapid treatment. An instance where informed consent has been shown to be successful is the treatment of gender dysphoria; a gender dysphoria diagnosis carries social stigma, requires approximately a year of therapy to diagnose, and those with gender dysphoria face worse outcomes (suicide, prejudice-motivated crimes while presenting as their neurological gender) when treatment is delayed.
Good point! Yes, the ideal path that maximizes health outcomes would definitely involve testing for a disorder before treating it. However, given there are no externalities (such as a shortage of a particular treatment), a person should have the right to do whatever they wish to their body, including harming it. Requesting treatment before official diagnosis is beneficial in cases where the ailment is difficult to diagnose, stigmatized, and/or has a poor prognosis without rapid treatment. An instance where informed consent has been shown to be successful is the treatment of gender dysphoria; a gender dysphoria diagnosis carries social stigma, requires approximately a year of therapy to diagnose, and those with gender dysphoria face worse outcomes (suicide, prejudice-motivated crimes while presenting as their neurological gender) when treatment is delayed.