Patient Assessment & Clinical Evaluation Flashcards
7 cards from real HSP practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Patient Assessment & Clinical Evaluation flashcards as text
A clinician uses the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-5 (SCID-5) rather than an unstructured interview. What is the primary advantage of this approach?
Answer: It increases diagnostic reliability by standardizing symptom inquiry
Structured interviews like the SCID-5 improve inter-rater reliability by ensuring all clinicians assess the same DSM criteria systematically.
Which component of a Mental Status Examination (MSE) evaluates whether a patient understands they have an illness requiring treatment?
Answer: Insight
Insight refers to the patient's awareness and understanding of their illness, its effects, and the need for treatment.
A psychologist is conducting a capacity evaluation for a patient who refuses cardiac surgery. Which four elements are standard in assessing decision-making capacity?
Answer: Understanding, appreciation, reasoning, and communicating a choice
The Appelbaum-Grisso framework identifies understanding, appreciation, reasoning, and expression of choice as the four core capacity criteria.
When screening for cognitive impairment in a busy primary care setting, which brief tool is most commonly recommended for its balance of brevity and validity?
Answer: Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA)
The MoCA is a brief 10-minute screen sensitive to mild cognitive impairment and is widely recommended for primary care settings.
A patient's self-report on a depression measure is significantly more severe than clinical observation suggests. What phenomenon should the clinician consider?
Answer: Negative response bias or amplification
Negative response bias involves over-reporting symptoms, which can reflect a cry for help, genuine distress amplification, or conscious exaggeration.
Which approach best describes ecological validity in neuropsychological assessment?
Answer: Using test results that accurately predict real-world functional abilities
Ecological validity refers to the degree to which test performance predicts functioning in everyday life, not just in-lab performance.
A psychologist assessing a patient with suspected PTSD uses the PCL-5. What does a score at or above the recommended threshold (33) indicate?
Answer: A positive screen warranting further diagnostic evaluation
PCL-5 scores at or above 33 indicate a positive screen, but formal diagnosis requires a structured diagnostic interview.