Nine Things That Your Parent Taught You About Mental Health Assessment
Mental Health Assessment – What Happens If You Are Unhappy With Your Mental Health Assessment? If you are suffering from an issue with your mental health, it is important to seek assistance. Mental illness can be as severe as physical disease. Everyone should be treated with respect and dignity, regardless of age, gender or ethnicity. mental health assessments I Am Psychiatry recognizes the need to fight discrimination. What is a Mental Health Assessment? A mental health evaluation is an examination that determines the extent to which an individual is performing emotionally, socially and also in the development stage. It can also aid in diagnosing disorders like depression or neurological diseases such as dementia. A healthcare professional will meet with the patient and observe their physical state during the initial assessment. They may inquire about the patient's symptoms and what's happening. They can also assess the way the person thinks, reason and remembers (cognitive functioning). There are a number of different tests that can be conducted during an assessment. They could be formal, standardized tests or informal, non-standardized tests. These tools may include a checklist of problems as well as a memory check or self report screening tool such as the GHQ or MMSE. These tools can be administered by a general practitioner or performed by an expert in mental health. Sometimes, people will require lab tests to help diagnose a disorder. These tests may include urine or blood samples. The tests are generally not painful. The only discomfort could be caused by the injection of blood, which can be felt as a small pinch or the sensation of stinging. In more serious instances, an MRI scan or EEG might be required. It is essential for a healthcare professional to have the most complete picture when conducting an assessment. This includes taking into consideration the history of the patient's relatives and lifestyle as well as the surroundings in which they live. This information is considered when deciding on the most appropriate method of treatment for the patient. What should happen during an assessment at a mental health service? The assessment is a chance to let healthcare professionals listen and understand your situation. It is essential that you use this opportunity to discuss your concerns and ask questions. You should be informed enough about the different treatments to make an informed choice. Staff should greet you with a warm and welcoming manner with respect and empathy, upon arrival (NICE 2009b). Individuals who want to sit in solitude or in a group should have a comfortable waiting area. In the course of the mental exam, your doctor will ask you about your thoughts and emotions, how they impact your day-to-day life and whether or not you've attempted to manage your symptoms by yourself. Your doctor will also observe your behavior. For example, they may observe how you speak and when you make eye contact. They may also test your memory and reasoning abilities by asking you simple questions like recalling short lists and naming common shapes or objects. If you fall within section 2 of the Mental Health Act, your AMHP will support and guide you throughout the assessment. You can bring a friend or a relative along to your appointment or opt to have an advocate who will represent your interests and views. They could be volunteers, such as charity workers or professionals, such as lawyers. Many people find it difficult to talk about their mental health with healthcare professionals, especially if they have had previous negative experiences. Children may not realize that changes in their moods and behavior can be a cause of worry, and others may not know who to turn to for assistance. It is essential that all healthcare professionals understand the consequences of previous bad experiences and strive to build trust. What should I do if am not satisfied with the evaluation? If you've been referred to under the Mental Health Act and you are not satisfied with the results you can file a complaint to the CQC. See our guide on making complaints for more details. Patients who seek mental health services usually have a lot of different appointments with a variety of professionals and may find it difficult to keep track of all the appointments. It is crucial to try and be as transparent and honest as you can to the person conducting your assessment. If you don't honest, the professional could have a different view of what you're doing and this could affect your care. Mental illness can affect your mood and mental thinking. It can lead to difficulties with relationships, work and daily activities. Common conditions include anxiety disorders, depression and schizophrenia. You can get help with a mental illness by talking to your doctor as well as your family and friends or going to an NHS local CAMHS service. The proper assessment and treatment is crucial to improving your mental health. NHS England works hard to ensure that everyone receives the right treatment at just the right time. This includes reducing delays and ensuring that the right information is available to anyone who requires it. We are also making adjustments to the way we collect and share information to facilitate this. We want to see all local mental healthcare services able to collect and share data the same as other NHS organizations. This will improve safety and the quality of the care. Our goal is to ensure that all providers have access to accurate and up-to-date data, in real time, no matter where they are. This is part of the NHS's commitment to Data Saves Lives, which is designed to remove the barriers to effective sharing of data across the health and social care systems. What should happen if I need to seek to get a second opinion? If you believe that the health professionals involved in your assessment aren't taking your concerns seriously, there are a few things you can do. You can ask the manager of your mental health service for a different professional to review the case with you, or contact one of the NHS helplines to get assistance in your region. If you reside in England the NHS offers a service called EIT which sends out a crisis response team to your home. You can also seek assistance from local volunteer groups or charities, like Mind or Rethink. You might want to seek a second opinion from another medical professional or doctor, or even from your GP. It is recommended to do this in the event that you aren't sure of your diagnosis or treatment options, or when the doctors aren't agreeing on the best option for you. A study published in American Journal of Medicine found second opinions to be of great value and costing only less than what the first opinion would have been. This is because experts can provide new perspectives and information that can alter the course of a patient's care. Another reason for seeking another opinion is that your initial doctor or healthcare professional may have missed a possible cause or impact of your symptoms. This could be due to a number of reasons, such as misdiagnosis or simply not paying attention attentively to your story. At Dementech we can organize a private mental health evaluation for you with our psychiatrists. We offer 50-minute consultations and collaborate with a majority of the major private insurance companies to ensure that psychiatric treatment are covered. If you don't have health insurance, we can still provide top-quality care at a reasonable cost. What should I do if I need an additional opinion from an expert? You are likely to be able to get a second opinion if you are dissatisfied with your mental health evaluation results. It's not a legal right however, most doctors are willing to help. You can ask your GP or the mental health services to make this happen. They should be able to provide you details of local advocacy services. The doctor will examine you and may perform further tests, including blood tests and a radiograph. The specialist will discuss the results with you and the treatment options available to you. This could involve medication or hospitalization as well as other options. When talking to you the doctor, he should take into account your age, gender and social background, as in addition to your sexual orientation and disability, as well as your religion as well as your religious or cultural beliefs and your sexual orientation. A second opinion can be beneficial because it allows you to compare medical advice from different experts and to gain a new perspective on your healthcare situation. It will help you feel more comfortable about your treatment options and diagnosis and also provide you more information about the potential adverse consequences of each option. You may have a very compelling reason to seek to get a second opinion. You might be concerned that you suffer from an unusual or rare condition and want a second opinion from a specialist regarding your diagnosis and possible treatment options. You may have heard about treatments that your provider does not provide and you want to know if these are suitable for you. A private Psychiatrist will usually see you within a couple of days and can access your entire health record. They can also schedule an online video consultation via Skype or Facetime and medical reports to be delivered directly to your GP.