Telephone screening of older adults using the Orientation-Memory-Concentration test.
The inability to efficiently screen the cognitive status of homebound elderly patients can hamper clinicians' ability to plan for safe, appropriate care. In this study, the six-item Orientation-Memory-Concentration (OMC) Test was administered to 12 elderly patients during a routine office visit. That same afternoon, each participant was called at home and the OMC repeated by telephone. Test-retest correlation was excellent (Pearson's correlation =.992). Concurrent validity was supported by complete (100%) agreement between the clinicians' subjective impressions of the patients' mental status and OMC ratings. The outcome implies that telephone screening of cognitive status can be reliable.
Dellasega
C A
CA
College of Medicine, Pennsylavania State University, Hershey, USA.
Lacko
L
L
Singer
H
H
Salerno
F
F
D000368:Aged; D001288:Attention; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods*; D008568:Memory; D008609:Mental Status Schedule / Q000592:standards*; D009730:Nursing Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D015588:Observer Variation; D009949:Orientation; D013689:Telephone