MENTAL MEASUREMENTS 1
University affiliation
Theprocess of treating the patients with the psychological problems isvery complicated. There are some tests, which the psychologists orthe physicians need to utilize. These tests are usually intended toassess and examine the client’s mental functional ability, as wellas his or her mental status. As such, it is impeccable to offer acomparative analysis of functional impairment, and symptom severitytests (Boone, 2013). For the symptom severity, the tests presentedare the Structured Interview of the Reported Symptoms (SIRS-2), andthe Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE). For the tests of functionalimpairment, the Burns Brief Inventory of Communication and Cognition,as well as the Ohio Functional Assessment Battery (OFAB), arepresented. Moreover, it is impeccable after analysis and comparison,to choose the most suitable test for the client who depicts numerousvarious symptoms that exhibits a likely availability of dementia.
The MMSE test
Thetest is the brief measure of the mental condition that is usuallyadministered individually. It is a cognitive status measure inadults, which is examinable. Its key purpose is to screen the personand evaluate if he or she has a cognitive impairment, and test itsseverity at a particular moment (Rabinovitz,2012). It follows the changes incognition throughout the period of treatment, and the clinician candocument the responses. Nonetheless, the test has a demerit of greatdementia miscalculation in the older people who are uneducated.
The SIR-2 test
Thetest targets to determine if an individual is feigning or malingeringthe cognitive deficit or mental illness. It entails some easyquestions, which should be read aloud to test the patient, where yesor no responses are required. It has 172 components that compare theobserved and the reported behavior of the client. The symptoms arecovered as subtle, absurd, improbable, rare, and severity.
Comparing MMSE and SIRS-2
Bothtests relates to the client’s mental statues, regarding cognitiveability. SIRS-2 takes around an hour to conduct, while the MMSE maytake as little as 15 minutes. These differences are vital for EmmaKinch. She requires a shorter test as she is said to have outburstsand mood swings (Rabinovitz, 2012).The MMSE will check her mental state concerning cognitive abilitydeficits, while the SIRS-2 will check if she is faking it or not.
TheMMSE appears to be apt to use with Emma Kinch first, it will not beoverwhelming for her as it takes too little time. Additionally, it ismore reliable, has high predictive value, and it has a highsensibility. Moreover, MMSE will assist in quantifying her cognitiveimpairment level, as opposed to SIRS-2.
Functional Impairment test
Thetest is to determine if Emma has the key neuropsychiatric disorders.Her functional decline can be as a result of the numerous aspectsincluding medical illness such as hypothyroidism. It can also beattributed to the recent loss of her husband. It is thus paramount todetermine the degree of functional deficits severity to be able toassist her.
Burns Brief Inventory of Communication andCognition
Thetest aims at determining the client’s impaired communication orcognitive skills due to neurological lesion, and helps in choosingthe suitable treatment. For Emma, this can be a hard test because itentails the right and left hemisphere inventories (Boone, 2013).Thus, the tests can be overwhelming and intrusive to Emma due to herobserved symptoms and behaviors.
OFAB
Thetest determines the functional degree of the abilities of the clientto establish the measurable goals. It takes around 10 minutes to anhour, and it aims at the adults undergoing little to profoundcognitive ability impairment.
Between the two, OFAB is the most suitable forEmma firstly, the test component data is more reliable and valid.Moreover, it particularly measures the functional skills of theclient that are used in evaluation. The result from OFAB candetermine the functioning level of Emma, depending on some observedskills. The results will also show the range of behavioral orcognitive functioning of the client, as opposed to the Burns BriefInventory of Communication and Cognition.
References
Boone, K. (2013). Assessmentof feigned cognitive impairment. NewYork: Guilford Press.
Rabinovitz, B. (2012). Temperament,executive control, and ADHD across development.University of North Carolina Press