Behavioural Assessment Process Quiz

Behavioural Assessment

• Uses direct observation to assess an individual's thoughts, feelings, and behaviours in a specific context.
• Suitable for individuals who are not old enough or unable to report their problems.
• Can be conducted in various settings, such as the patient's workplace or home, or through role-play simulations in a clinical setting.
• Focuses on the behaviour being observed, including what happened before the behaviour, the behaviour itself, and its consequences.
• Self-monitoring technique allows individuals to observe their own behaviour.
• Awareness of being observed can distort observational data.

Core Ethical Values and Standards

• Respect for persons: respect patients' worth, dignity, and sense of value.
• Best interests or well-being (non-maleficence): avoid harming patients or acting against their best interests.
• Best interests or well-being (beneficence): act in the best interest of patients even when their interests conflict with one's own.

Mental Status Examination (MSE)

• A systematic and structured observation of a patient's behaviour.
• Typically performed quickly by an experienced interviewer.
• Encompasses five categories: appearance and behaviour, thought processes, mood and affect, intellectual functioning, and sensorium.
• Observes patient's physical behaviours, dress, posture, appearance, and facial expression.
• Assesses thought processes through conversation, including rate and flow of speech, and continuity of speech.
• Evaluates mood and affect, including whether the patient's affect is appropriate or inappropriate.
• Examines intellectual functioning, including ability to talk in abstractions, understand metaphors, and memory.
• Assesses sensorium, including patient's general awareness of their surroundings, knowledge of date and time, and identity.

Introduction to Assessment and Psycho-Diagnostic

• Reliability: degree to which a measurement is consistent and stable over time.
• Validity: degree to which a tool or technique assesses what it is supposed to assess.
• Standardisation: process of determining specific norms and requirements for an assessment technique.

Diagnostic Process

• The first step is to ask the patient what is wrong to establish the presenting problem.
• Rank multiple problems in order of importance and address them accordingly.
• Take a full history of the presenting condition and other relevant facts.
• Focus on both the content of the patient's history and observable signs during the interview.
• Rule out medical conditions that could explain the problem before making a diagnosis.