Mental Status Exam- Gardner Flashcards
The (blank) is the psychological equivalent of a physical exam
Mental Status Exam (MSE)
What does the mental status exam tell us?
describe the mental state and behaviors of the person being seen
What does the MSE include?
both objective observations of the clinician and subjective descriptions given bby the patient
What all does the MSE provide info about?
the diagnosis, the assessment, response to treatment
A mental status exam provides a snap shot at a (blank)
point in time
To properly assess the MSE information about the patients history is needed including (blank, blank and blank) because you need to ascertain what is normal for the patient
education, cultural, social factors
The mental status exam is broken into 8 parts, what are they?
observation Mood Perceptions Thought Content THought Process Behavior Insight Judgement Cognition
How do you check speech?
rate, rhythm, volume
What are the ways to describe eye contact?
good, appropriate, intermittant, poor, intense
What is akathesia?
Cant stop moving feet
What does euthymic mean?
normal mood
Is mood reported by the clinican or patient?
patient
What are you looking for when asking about perceptions?
normal- no auditory or visual hallucinations
Abnormal-preoccupations, illusions, ideas of referenece, derealization, hallucinations
What are the abnormal thought contents? What do you ask about?
Suicidal ideation
Homicidal ideation
Delusions
-passive, present, future tense
What are you looking for in Thought process?
how they are thinking… NOrmal (tight, linear)
Abnormal (not clear, organized or coherent…circumstantial (circling), tangential (telling a story and you never get there))
What is the folstein mini-menta state exam?
it is part of the MSE exam that is specifically for cognition
What is insight?
Awareness of one’s own ilness and/or situations
What are all the components of observation?
- appearance
- speech
- eye contact
- motor activity
- affect
WHat are the rhythms of speech?
articulation, prosody, dysarthria, monotone, slurred
What is affect?
the emotional state the CLINICIAN observes
What are the different types of affect?
Euthymic (normal mood)
Dysphoric (depressed, irritable, angry)
Euphoric (elevated, elated)
Anxious
What is the range of affect?
Full (normal) vs. Restricted
Blunted or flat
labile
What does congruency tell us?
whether the affect matches the mood
How do you describe someone who is unstable?
labile
How does a mood get reported?
by the patient- dependent on his/her emotional state
What are the ways you can classify ideations?
active, passive, plan, intent
What are circumstantial thought processes?
What are tangential thought processes?
talk in circles
never get to the point
(blank) is the ability to anticipate the consequences of one’s behavior and make decisions to safeguard his/her well being and that of others
Judgement
How do you describe judgement and insight?
good-fair-poor
How do you asses level of consicousness?
- orientation
- memory
- attention
How do you determine orientation?
time, place, person
descrip: alert and oriented X 3
How do you assess attention and concentration?
ability to focus
sustain and approp. shift mental attention (serial ‘s. WORLD backward)
How do you test memory?
Give three words, check back later
How do you check abstraction?
have them explain a proverb
What is the folstein mini-mental state exam?
30 item screening tool, useful for documenting serial cognitive changes and cognitive impairment
What do you document with the MMSE?
you document the total score and the items missed on the MMSE
What are all tested on the MMSE?
- Orientation
- Registration
- Attention and Calculation
- Recall
- Language
