Mental Health Assessment Flashcards

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1
Q

what is mental status

A

A person’s emotional (feeling) and cognitive (knowing) function.

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2
Q

What does optimal functioning aim towards?

A

Simultaneous life satisfaction in work, caring relationships, and with self.

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3
Q

What is a mental disorder?

A

A situation is when a person has a response to a traumatic life event that is much greater than expected.

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4
Q

What are mental disorders characterized as?

A

Organic disorders (caused by a disease in the brain ex. Dementia)

Psychiatric disorders ( anxiety, schizophrenia)

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5
Q

What does a mental status assessment do?

A

Documents dysfunction; determines how the dysfunction affects self-care in everyday life.

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6
Q

Can mental disorders be directly assessed?

A

No. It’s functioning is inferred through assessment.

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7
Q

When do we complete a mental status exam?

A

Recent trauma resulting in a change in memory

Report of decline in cognitive ability

When a patient requires a thorough exam of emotional and cognitive functioning

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8
Q

What are the 4 major components of a Mental Status exam?

A

ABCT

  1. Appearance
  2. Behavior
  3. Cognition
  4. Thought processes and Perceptions
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9
Q

what are we looking at when assessing appearance?

A

Posture
Body Movements
Dress
Grooming & Hygiene
Pupils (drugs)

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10
Q

What are we looking at when assessing behavior?

A

Level of consciousness (LOC)
facial expression (appropriate for the situation)
Speech (fluent, slurred)
Mood and affect (appropriateness)

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11
Q

What are we looking at when assessing cognitive functioning?

A

Orientation
Attention span
Recent memory
Remote memory
New learning (4 unrelated words)

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12
Q

What are we looking at when assessing thought processes and perceptions?

A

Thought content (what they say is consistent and logical)
Perceptions (person should be consistently aware of reality)
Screen for anxiety
Screen for Depression
Screen for suicidal thoughts

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13
Q

What is dementia?

A

Chronic disturbance of consciousness and cognition. Gradual and progressive.

Long and short-term memory loss (short -term more pronounced)

Not a normal part of aging and not reversible.

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14
Q

What is delirium?

A

Acute (fast onset) disturbances of consciousness and cognition (develops over a short period of time.

Impaired memory (short-term)

Usually resolved when underlying cause is treated (UTI, dialysis, esp. older patients)

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15
Q

What are the levels of consciousness?

A

Alert
Lethargic (still responsive)
Obtunded (similar to lethargy, but more out)
Stupor/semi-coma (in and out)
Coma (completely out)

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16
Q

What is the difference between consciousness and cognition?

A

Consciousness refers to being alert or comatose

cognition refers to how well their brain is functioning, knowledge, memory

17
Q

Glasgow Coma Scale

A

Describes level of consciousness.
Measures 3 areas:

Eye opening response
Motor response
verbal response

18
Q

What is a normal score on the Glasgow coma scale?

A

Score of 15

19
Q

What score denotes a coma on the Glasgow coma scale?

A

Score of <8

20
Q

What is global aphasia

A

Most common, most severe.

speech is absent or only a few words. No comprehension, cannot repeat write, or read words.

21
Q

What is Broca’s or Expressive Aphasia

A

Able to understand language

can’t express self-using language

Can’t repeat or read aloud

Auditory and reading comprehension are intact

22
Q

Wernicke or Receptive Aphasia (word salad)

A

Can hear sounds but can’t relate to them

Speech is fluent, patient has a great urge to speak but words are made up and frequented with word substitutions; resulting in incomprehensible speech

Impaired repetition, reading, and writing. (If intake is poor, output is poor)

23
Q

What is a Mini Mental Status Exam (MMSE)?

A

A test only for the cognitive functions of the mental status exam.

A total of 11 questions, takes 5-10 minutes.

Must be able to write and have no visual impairments.

24
Q

What type of aphasia patients would not be able to take the Mini-Mental Status Exam (MMSE)?

A

Receptive aphasia (Wernicke) patients

Also comatose patients

25
Q

Why should we talk slower and give older patient’s longer time to respond?

A

They don’t have a cognitive deficit, but their response time is slower and thought process takes longer.