Although the interview and the mental status examination compose the primary diagnostic tools in psychiatry, the use of standardized rating scales and laboratory tests provides important adjunctive data. In addition to ruling out medical and neurologic explanations for psychiatric symptoms,…
Overview Psychological and neuropsychological assessments can be invaluable in cases where there is a question regarding differential diagnosis, a change in functioning from a premorbid baseline, or when a baseline is needed to assess the efficacy of planned treatments. Clinical…
Introduction First appearing in 1987 in an internally published collection of essays celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Massachusetts General Hospital Department of Psychiatry, George Murray's “Limbic Music” is a rare example of the medical literature producing actual literature .…
For the psychiatric consultant, the neurologic examination is an important component of every patient evaluation. By reviewing the main components of the standard examination and attempting to relate them to anatomic constructs, the consulting psychiatrist may gain a theoretical and…
Overview The purpose of the initial psychiatric interview is to build a relationship and a therapeutic alliance with an individual or a family, and to collect, organize, and synthesize information about present and past thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. The relevant…
Overview The doctor–patient relationship—despite all the pressures of accountable care, complex and demanding electronic health records, and other systemic complications—remains one of the most profound partnerships in the human experience; in it, one person reveals to another his or her…
This chapter provides a practical approach to the assessment of affective, behavioral, and cognitive problems of patients in the general hospital. We first survey the landscape of consultation psychiatry and then identify six broad domains of psychiatric problems commonly encountered…
Psychosomatic Medicine A keen interest in the relationship between the psyche and the soma has been maintained in medicine since early times, and certain ancient physicians (such as Hippocrates) have been eloquent on the subject. A search for the precise…
Key Points Mental health is essential to general health around the world; however, there is a continuous need to educate psychiatrists in the developed world about global mental health and to build psychiatric and mental health resources to meet an…
Key Points Background Portrayals of mental illness in news and entertainment media can educate the public and promote help-seeking efforts, or they can create and perpetuate stigma. Clinical and Research Challenges Mass media reports of suicide can trigger imitation; following…