Treating A Secondary Diagnosis at Ascend

It’s not unusual for teens who need mental health treatment to suffer from multiple, concurrent conditions or symptoms. Whether the secondary condition is related to behavioral health or a physical condition, Ascend has strategies to address everything your child is dealing with. While we do offer comprehensive treatment for teens with a dual diagnosis related to substance abuse, there are some conditions and symptoms that need to be considered a little differently. If your child is suffering from disordered eating or high functioning autism, our treatment program can still help — even though we don’t treat these issues as primary disorders.

What Is a Secondary Diagnosis?

A secondary condition or diagnosis is one that coexists with the primary reason for your child’s admission. This second condition may not be the reason for their stay with us, but it still affects our personalized treatment plans and it’s vital to our documentation processes. These conditions cannot be ignored while treating the primary condition because they affect everything your child thinks and feels.

When it comes to disordered eating and autism specifically, we are equipped to handle them as secondary conditions even though they aren’t the primary diagnosis. Our team takes into consideration best practices when working with these conditions and takes a holistic approach to treatment planning.

Why Ascend?

When a child suffers from multiple disorders, there is often a hierarchy of which ones should be treated first. Depending on your doctor’s recommendations, Ascend may just be the right fit for your teen. If you want to learn more about how we address secondary conditions while treating your child, please reach out to our admissions team today.