Testing Patients: Psychiatric Evaluation

Based on Erics symptoms, I would recommend psychiatric evaluation. A psychiatric evaluation refers to a defined manner of testing patients concerning their behaviors. In this respect, the process entails gathering information concerning an individuals mental health with the aim of making a diagnosis pertaining to the patient. Eric would be subject to a psychiatric evaluation owing to the symptoms he presents with as they are not normal or cannot be considered normal for a mentally healthy patient. An evaluation is normally the first step in the process of treatment and includes social information, observations, biographical information, and information gathered from a series of psychological examinations. An evaluation would lead to the establishment of a diagnosis and consequently formulation of the patients problems, which helps in the planning of treatment and care.

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Specific Disorders for Consideration

Anxiety is a disorder in some cases especially if it affects the quality of life of a patient. Erics anxiety is worth evaluation as it affects his concentration at work and his social life. In this respect, anxiety is a disorder when symptoms are chronic and cause interference in daily life and someones ability to function in everyday situations. The symptoms associated with chronic anxiety include fear, confusion, constant worrying and poor concentration all of which are exhibited by Eric. It would thus be better to evaluate his anxiety to rule out the possibility of an anxiety disorder.

The second disorder worth evaluating in Eric is Schizophrenia. The disorder is a mental disorder, which is characterized by at least two of the symptoms listed. Delusions, hallucinations, incoherence, or disorganized speech, catatonic behavior, agitation among other bizarre behavioral symptoms. In this respect, Eric presents with delusion, which is a belief in something that is out of the ordinary despite the fact that the situation is not true. He has delusions of persecution sometimes referred to as paranoia. He believes that his colleagues are planning to harm him by burying him alive. This is in line with believing that people are out to get him. Delusions associated with schizophrenia often involve strange ideas such as Erics strange idea of being buried alive. He is also deluded in believing that he hears voices of what he refers to as cats insulting or disparaging him.

Hallucinations are sensory perceptions experienced by an individual without relevant outside provocation or stimulus. This means an individual experiences something that does not exist and only exists in their mind. Erics hallucinations are auditory as he is hearing voices. This kind of hallucinations are consistent with schizophrenia as schizophrenic patients often present with hallucinations of voices that are either abusive, vulgar or critical. A psychiatric evaluation would help in diagnosing Eric in relation to schizophrenia as a mental disorder.

Clinical Diagnosis for Schizophrenia

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