Introduction
The essential factor in the assessment and treatment of people with mental disorders is the psychological interview. The criteria-based evaluation and treatment strategy will ultimately be determined by how we gather information. The discussion will build the client-provider relationship from the outset, which can significantly impact the course of therapy (Ratcliffe, 2017). Three essential elements of the psychiatric interview include past psychiatric illness, mental status exam, and formulation. This paper discusses three essential components that are of critical importance in the introduction of psychiatric interviews.
Key Components of the Psychiatric Interview
Psychiatric History
The prior psychiatric history should include the patient’s entire lifetime’s worth of psychiatric conditions, manifestations, and therapies. The indications should include the timing, duration, incidence, and intensity of the occurences (English et al., 2019).
Risk Assessment for Suicide and Violence
Factors such as instances of self-injury and suicidal ideation thoughts should be evaluated. Outpatient, residential, day, and volunteer treatments should all be included in treatment episodes. The doctor should gather and examine data regarding the participant’s response to medications, other medicines, such as electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), and other treatments.
Mental Status Examination
The mental status examination (MSE), which assesses every aspect of academic performance, seeks indications of the causes and symptoms of mental disorders. As soon as the interview begins, the practitioner will initiate the MSE by observing, asking direct questions, and conducting cognitive screenings. The screening includes questions about appearance, behavior, motor skills, speech, affect, mood, intellect, abstract thought, and cognitive process (Bornstein, 2017). If there are suicidal thoughts, it is essential to evaluate the patient’s treatment plan as well as the patient’s aim, techniques, motivation, and purpose for living.
Synthesis
The synthesis results from analyzing all the facts, the diagnosis, the suggestions, and the treatment strategy. A synopsis of the patient’s history, current symptoms, and condition should be included in the formulation. When taken as a whole, these components ought to result in both the provisional and differential diagnoses of the patient’s ailment (Bornstein, 2017). The composition should include a synopsis of the hazard analysis, an estimation of the participant’s risk of committing suicide, a justification for the treatment protocol, and recommendations for the chosen treatment. All information, including patient evaluation, risks of uncontrolled illness, available treatments, and the advantages and disadvantages of each, should be discussed with the patient.
Psychometric Properties of the GDS Rating Scale
Older adults frequently experience depression and its symptoms, which are not a regular aspect of aging. With older people, the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) has undergone considerable testing. An older adult’s self-report of depression is measured by the GDS (Youngstrom et al., 2017). Because of their strong link with anxiety and depression in earlier validation tests, the answer, which comes in a yes/no format, was developed. The GDS cannot replace a diagnosis interview conducted by a mental health expert. When baseline data are matched to the latest scores, it serves as a valuable screening tool in the clinical environment to facilitate the evaluation of depression in older adults.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the psychiatric interview, often a diagnostic test or evaluation, is a complex and time-consuming process. Even with a helpful customer, the procedure can still take an hour. The client’s social background provides the provider with crucial details on how they function and the coping mechanisms they currently use. This information is essential in identifying the symptoms that may be linked to substance abuse and the kind of therapy that would be most effective for each unique client.
References
Bornstein, R. F. (2017). Evidence-based psychological assessment. Journal of Personality Assessment, 99(4), 435-445. Web.
English, D., Rendina, H. J., & Parsons, J. T. (2018). The effects of intersecting stigma: A longitudinal examination of minority stress, mental health, and substance use among Black, Latino, and multiracial gay and bisexual men. Psychology of violence, 8(6), 669. Web.
Youngstrom, E. A., Van Meter, A., Frazier, T. W., Hunsley, J., Prinstein, M. J., Ong, M. L., & Youngstrom, J. K. (2017). Evidence‐based assessment as an integrative model for applying psychological science to guide the voyage of treatment. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 24(4), 331-363. Web.
Ratcliffe, M. (2017). Real hallucinations: Psychiatric illness, intentionality, and the interpersonal world. MIT Press. Web.