Clinician's Thesaurus, 8th Edition

Edward L. Zuckerman received his PhD in clinical psychology from the University of Pittsburgh and remained there as an adjunct teacher of personality psychology and human sexuality for 14 years. He taught abnormal psychology at Carnegie Mellon University for 9 years and now consults to the Social Security Disability Determination Division. He was in the independent general practice of clinical psychology for more than 15 years and has worked in state hospitals and community mental health centers. He lives on a small farm in Pennsylvania with his wife, a daughter, and their horses, chickens, dogs, cats, geese, and ducks.

Getting Orientated to the Clinician's Thesaurus. Part I: Conducting a Mental Health Evaluation. Beginning and Ending the Interview. Mental Status Evaluation Questions/Tasks. Questions about Signs, Symptoms, and Other Behavior Patterns. Part II: Standard Terms and Statements for Wording Psychological Reports. A. Introducing the Report. Beginning the Report: Preliminary Information. Referral Reasons. Background Information and History. B. The Person in the Evaluation. Behavioral Observations. Responses to Aspects of the Examination. Presentation of Self. Emotional/Affective Symptoms and Disorders. Cognition and Mental Status. Abnormal Signs, Symptoms, and Syndromes. Personality Patterns. C. The Person in the Environment. Activities of Daily Living. Social/Community Functioning. Couple and Family Relationships. Vocational/Academic Skills. Recreational Functioning. Other Specialized Evaluations. D. Completing the Report. Summary of Findings and Conclusions. Diagnostic Statement/Impression. Recommendations. Prognostic Statements. Closing Statements. Part III: Useful Resources. Treatment Planning and Treatment Plan Formats. Formats for Reports, Evaluations, and Summaries. Treatments for Specific Disorders and Concerns. Listing of Common Psychiatric and Psychoactive Drugs. Psychiatric Masquerade of Medical Conditions. Appendix: A. Abbreviations in Common Use. Appendix B. Annotated Readings in Assessment, Interviewing, and Report Writing.