Mental Health Nursing - Assessing Mental Health A physical examination is typically part of mental health tests to rule out any physical conditions This can include urine tests, blood testing, or even brain scans Psychologists also utilize a variety of tools to assess mental health These range from pen and paper test forms to in-depth interviews, or self-complete postal questionnaires Mood and affect The doctor will first be aware of the patient's mood as well as their affect They are the general emotional state, which can range from happiness to sadness, or anger to anger Affect can be measured by watching facial expressions and manner of speaking as well as the reaction to external or internal stimuli eg You can express your feelings by laughing at the joke or crying when you lose a loved one Affect is a short-term emotion, whereas mood is a more sustained emotional state It is usually described as being either euthymic normal or dysphoric, which translates to depressed Professionals in psychiatry must be careful to avoid confusion between the two terms because they are interpreted differently and are affected by various factors The MSE is a helpful tool for clinical diagnosis however, it can be difficult to interpret from the subjective report of a patient It is therefore important to inquire about how patients have been feeling in the last few weeks, instead of using only the observation of a physician Recent research showed that the assessment tools differed in their ability to identify a significant portion of symptoms This included those that were classified under the same disorder This can be due to the different emphasis placed on cognitive, emotional or physical symptoms as along with differences in the duration and frequency of symptom reporting It is possible that the MSE relies solely on self-reporting, which could be biased Patients who report both a headache and anxiety is likely to report an lower score than a patient reporting only a migraine Patients tend to minimize negative emotions while exaggerating positive ones The mood and the affect of a person can have an impact on the content of thought This could affect the way people make decisions, their interpersonal behavior and physical functioning They can be affected by fatigue, stress and social interactions A positive mood can actually increase creativity and mental strength Conversely, a negative mood can affect concentration and cause confusion Therefore, a thorough and thorough mental health assessment is required to take into account the patient's mood and emotional state as well as the underlying causes Thought content One of the most essential aspects of a mental state exam is assessing how a patient thinks Particularly, it is assessing thought process and thought content The thought process is the logic, coherence and organization of the patient's thoughts A normal thought processes is goal directed and rational Thought processing may be altered in a variety of mental health conditions Examples include hallucinations, delusions and loose associations A mental state examination also assesses the quality of insight and judgement Insight is the ability to recognize that there is an issue, and judgement is the ability to make a rational decision based on information Both can be impaired by various mental health conditions such as depression and schizophrenia If a patient has impaired judgment or insight, they are at greater chance of harming themselves or others If they are in danger, their sensible judgement would suggest leaving the home immediately However, a person with impaired judgment might decide to stay in the building and trying to put out the fire Thought content includes the subject matter, themes and beliefs that a patient has Examiners will assess the clarity, connection and content of a patient's thoughts They will note any thoughts that are circumstantial or tangential or thoughts, and also if the patient is having flashes of ideas digressions from the conversation subject They will also provide feedback on the pace at which a person is thinking, such as if they seem to be more or less fast Other areas to be considered are whether the patient's thoughts are congruent or incongruent with their surroundings A patient with depression might be able to hear angry voices, whereas a person suffering from schizophrenia may experience an illusion that a calm voice is speaking Patients should be asked about any homicidal or suicidal thoughts Although they are not common, they can be life-threatening and should be considered during every mental health assessment Observation A nurse's observation skills are essential to a mental health assessment They include a careful examination of appearance, behavior and any unusual beliefs or perceptions such delusions or hallucinations and mood cognition including attention, memory, orientation A mental state examination for nurses also incorporates observation of motility, including any physical movement, such as eating or drinking, brushing your teeth, using the toilet and putting on shoes The observation component of the mental state examination is a key component of determining whether or not a patient may pose an imminent risk to themselves or others This is accomplished by determining whether or not the patient appears to be moving in a way that suggests they are about to harm themself or someone else Additionally, a thorough thought content assessment is made by monitoring the patient throughout the interview and determining their main concerns It is crucial to check if the patient is having suicidal or homicidal ideas and to determine if they're experiencing thoughts of suicide or delusions Global assessment of functioning GAF which is an assessment of functioning in numerical form, ranging from 0 to 100, evaluates the ability of the person to perform in everyday life and their capability of dealing with stressors https//ramiecircle9weritenet/a-guide-to-assessment-for-mental-health-in-2023 is a crucial component of the mental state exam and aids in making treatment decisions It is important to recognize that observing the behavior of a patient could cause distress It is crucial that the procedure is conducted in a way that does not provoke or cause discomfort It is crucial that the patient is fully informed of the purpose of the observations and the duration of the procedure Nursing observation is a crucial skill that must be a central part of any nursing program However, it must be noted that patients might disagree with the level of observation If they are unable to come to an agreement with staff, then they should be able to access an advocate service that will represent their interests and assist them in any discussions regarding their treatment This should be a part of the local policy and practice, with the involvement and the support of user groups Questioning Many people have a difficult to discuss their mental health problems however, family members can often notice when something is wrong They can also encourage the person to get an assessment These assessments can be very broad and cover a range of topics such as mood, appearance, thought process, memory and much more A mental health professional can also inquire about the person's private life They will ask what they feel and what's happened recently The test consists of an assessment of cognitive ability that examines a person's ability think clearly and retain information The test subject may ask to complete simple tasks, such as focusing their attention on an alphabet of words or objects as well as storing lists and lists for solving math problems The test can also check the ability of the individual to make good decisions and make good judgments The test measures a patient's perception, which is their knowledge of their condition and how it affects them The person's attitude toward others, himself and the illness is also an important element of a mental evaluation The tone of voice, the facial expression, and body expressions of a patient could signal depression, anger, or a feeling of helplessness It is also important to know whether the patient is seeking help or resigned to living with their health condition In more serious instances the evaluation of mental health might include a look at the patient's thoughts that may include illusions or hallucinations These conditions can be extremely dangerous and even deadly A mental health assessment should be holistic and focus on the person's interactions to their world A health professional might use art, music, photos or a variety of assessment tools that are electronic to help understand the person and their unique view of the world around them They should also talk to the person about the challenges that caused them to seek help and reassure them that there is nothing wrong with seeking out an expert in mental health