Discussion Part I: Assessment of Psychosocial Health Conditions

In acute care settings, patients with psychosocial health conditions may present with a variety of complex symptoms that require comprehensive assessment. The results from this assessment are crucial to developing a diagnosis and creating an individualized treatment plan for a patient. For this Discussion, you focus on the assessment as you consider case studies of patients with psychosocial health conditions. You determine what history should be collected from the patients as well as what physical exams and diagnostic tests should be conducted, and you formulate a differential diagnosis with several possible conditions.

To prepare:
•Review this week’s media in Assessment of Psychosocial Health Conditions and select one of the three case studies.
•With the case study you selected in mind, reflect on the patient information provided.
•Think about the health history you would need to collect from the patient.
•Consider what physical exams and diagnostic tests would be appropriate to help you gather more information about the patient’s condition. Reflect on how results might be used to make a diagnosis.
•Identify at least five possible conditions to consider in a differential diagnosis for the patient.

By Day 3

Post a description of the health history you would need to collect from the patient in the case study you selected. Explain what physical exams and diagnostic tests would be appropriate and how the results would be used to make a diagnosis. List five possible conditions for the patient’s differential diagnosis and justify why you selected each.