title: A clinical study of competency to consent to hospitalization and treatment in geriatric inpatients.
abstract: This study used a Competency Questionnaire modified for medical surgical patients (CQ-Med). Twenty-nine patients (ages 65-94 years) admitted to a geriatric medicine unit were studied. Along with the CQ-Med, patients were administered several WAIS-R subtests, the Blessed Dementia Scale (BDS), and Mini Mental State Exam (MMSE). Additionally, a blind forensic evaluation for competency to consent to hospitalization and treatment was performed for the purpose of validation of the CQ-Med. Results of the study found that, as expected, increased age was correlated with decreasing performance on the CQ-Med and decreased findings of competence by clinical exam. However, there was great variability within each age group, demonstrating individual differences in the progress of declining competency. CQ-Med scores also correlated well with the WAIS-R subtest raw and scaled scores. Scores on the MMSE and BDS were less well correlated. The CQ-Med may be a useful adjunct in assessing declining competency in geriatric patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, New York Medical College, New York, NY, USA. stephen@billick.com
authors.forename: Stephen B
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Billick
authors.forename: Dolores R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Perez
authors.forename: Amir
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Garakani
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005188:False Negative Reactions; D005189:False Positive Reactions; D005260:Female; D005555:Forensic Psychiatry; D015577:Geriatric Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D007258:Informed Consent; D008297:Male; D016743:Mental Competency; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires