A Full Psychiatric Assessment
A psychiatric assessment is the first step to receiving the proper treatment for your mental health. The psychiatrist will ask you lots of questions about your work and private life, sources of stress, any significant traumas you've had, as well as whether you have experienced any issues with alcohol or drugs.
Background and Histories
A full psychiatric assessment, or psych eval is typically a multi-disciplinary process in hospital settings that involves psychologists, occupational therapists and social workers. However, the psychiatrist plays the lead role in taking a detailed medical history and conducting an examination of mental health. This information may be obtained from direct observation or the person being assessed themselves and carers, and also through specific psychological tests.
The doctor will inquire with the person about their symptoms and what they've been up to in the past few months, weeks and years. They will also ask questions about personal and family health. This information will help the doctor to determine what is the cause of the symptoms and if they're caused by a different condition.
In this stage during this time, the psychiatrist will conduct an examination of the medical history and find out whether there is an ancestry of anxiety, depression, or other psychiatric disorders within the family. They will also need to know if the person suffers from any physical issues, such as diabetes or heart disease and what medications they are taking or have been prescribed in the past.
Additionally the psychiatrist will take note of the present symptoms and how long they've been experiencing them for. They will also ask about the person's life which includes their work and their home environment. They will also discuss prior treatment and the level of adherence. Most often, family members and carers provide information that the patient hasn't previously disclosed but this is an issue of confidentiality and doesn't violate their rights to privacy.
Depending on the severity of the symptoms, a range of other tests and observations could be required. These could include laboratory tests, blood pressure readings or electroencephalography (EEG), which measures brain activity. They can also take an IQ test, which measures cognitive abilities. These tests test spatial abilities, concentration memory, memory, as well as communication skills.
All psychiatric assessments should be performed by professionals who are skilled and knowledgeable. This will ensure that the diagnosis and treatment plan are accurate.
Mental Status Examining
The mental status exam (MSE) can be a harrowing experience for the physician and patient. It's a "snapshot" of the patient in a specific moment, and is useful for describing the patient's behaviours and thoughts at that moment. The MSE can also be helpful in showing how a patient's mental state changes over time, such as from depression to mania.
The MSE begins when the physician makes the first observations of the patient. It is usually done during the taking of the history. The how a patient interacts and behaves around the examiner can reveal something about the root of the mental disorder. This includes the dishevelled appearance of a depressed person or the provocative style of manic patients. It could also be a sign of lack of motivation or effort from a person who is depressed or on antipsychotic medication.
When a psychiatric examination is conducted, it is best done when the patient is relaxed and cooperative. Both the patient and the examiner might be uncomfortable during the interview. It is important to make the right impression. The MSE should only serve as an element of the overall intake assessment. The results of the MSE should be carefully compared to those from other sources such as imaging studies or laboratory tests.
The MSE is less structured than physical examinations and most of the information gathered is taken by the doctor during the history-taking procedure. However, a thorough MSE should include descriptions of general appearance and behavior, alertness and attention as well as speech and motor activity, mood and affect, thinking and perception as well as attitude and understanding. It should also include an evaluation of higher cognitive capabilities such as parietal-lobe functions (pictorial representation, right-left discrimination and localization of objects in space).
It is crucial that the MSE is incorporated into the context of the entire intake assessment and that doctors interpret the results with sensitivity and care. A thorough MSE can reveal a range of abnormalities including those that are specific to mental disorders. However it should be considered as a single data point in the patient's history and is of no clinical value.
Assessing Thought Content
The thought content section is the biggest of the MSE sections and should contain details about delusional thoughts (thoughts that are not true) like persecutory, grandiose or jealous thoughts; hallucinations (hearing or seeing things others don't) Preoccupations (such as anxieties, fears or fears) and suicidal ideas. These questions should be explicitly asked. The intensity and severity of the pathological thinking should be described. Also whether or not they correspond to the mood (e.g. a patient who is depressed hearing voices that are angry or instigating them to kill themselves versus hallucinations that are calm and soothing).
Thought process is the logic, relevance, coherence and flow psychiatric assessment for family court of the client's thoughts as they respond to the questions of the examiner during the MSE interview. The doctor will also be able to determine if the thought process is disorganized or goal-directed, and the frequency with which it moves between one topic and the next without any clear connection. Disorganized, tangential or circumstantial associations are thought processes that may be indicators of mental health issues such as schizophrenia, mania and bipolar disorder.
In addition, psychologists and neuropsychologists assess the client's ability to focus attention and hold information in memory. This can be determined through examiner observations, client self-report or tests such as counting backwards from 100 by sevens. They also evaluate the client's coping strategies and cognitive performance in everyday life, which can be assessed through direct questioning and observation of behavior.
During the MSE psychologists will be observing the client's body language and facial expressions to determine if they appear nervous or shy. They also examine the client's agitation and fidgeting in order to determine whether they are anxious or fearful. Psychologists utilize the MSE along with other tests and assessments to identify and design a treatment program. Psychologists are also trained to recognize the signs that a client's behavior may be consistent with a particular mental illness or is caused by a different reason such as substance abuse, an injury or medication side effects. This information is crucial in determining the best treatment option and follow-up.
Evaluation of Mood, Anxiety and Stress
It's normal for people to experience difficult times. But when these problems start to affect relationships, daily tasks or even sleep, it could be time to schedule an appointment for a psychiatric evaluation. This test for mental health is also known as "psych eval" and is usually conducted by a psychiatrist or a doctor. The procedure can be a bit daunting and usually there's a lot of information that you'll need to disclose. It's important to remember that your therapist will want to collect all the information so they can make an accurate diagnosis and recommend the right treatment for you.
A psychiatric assessment will include a review and physical examination of your medical history. This is to make sure that your symptoms are not caused by a physical condition such as thyroid disease or a neurological disorder.
Additionally the doctor will inquire about any other psychiatric or medical issues you've experienced in the past, and whether you're taking any medication currently. If the patient is unable to give an account due to their mental state it's important that their family members and caregivers are able to answer the questions. This is not a violation of confidentiality and it allows the doctor to obtain more information than could be obtained during a face-toface interview.
During the psychiatric interview the doctor will evaluate the patient's emotional state by observing their voice tone and body language. They'll also look at their thoughts to determine if they are connected and goal-oriented. For instance the doctor will assess the ability of the patient to focus during the interview and how easily they switch between various thoughts. This is an essential aspect to the assessment as a manic or psychotic patient might not be able think clearly and quickly shift their focus of thought.
For many seeking a psychiatric assessment, it's the first step to get the right treatment they require. Despite the stigma associated with mental illness, it's essential that anyone who suspects they're suffering from symptoms of a mental disorder seek an evaluation. Don't let your fears or anxiety stop you from seeking help because it could have life-threatening consequences for you and the people around you.