Mental Health Assessment

Mental Status Evaluation

How It Feels

A mental health assessment is used to find out how you think and feel.

• If you are being checked for a problem, such as alcohol dependence, you may feel resentment, anger, or hostility and may not want to have the assessment.
• If you are being evaluated for a health condition, such as Alzheimer's disease, you may be afraid.
• Because some mental health problems are hard to diagnose, you may worry or become upset if your condition is not quickly or easily identified.

Lab tests do not usually cause much discomfort. A blood sample will be taken from a vein in your arm. An elastic band is wrapped around your upper arm and may feel tight. You may feel nothing at all from the needle, or you may feel a quick sting or pinch. Collecting a urine sample does not cause pain.

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Author:	Jeannette Curtis Ralph Poore	Last Updated: February 20, 2008
Medical Review:	Anne C. Poinier, MD - Internal Medicine Kathleen Romito, MD - Family Medicine Donald Sproule, MD, CM, CCFP, FCFP - Family Medicine
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