Review Video

Many patients entering the hospital may have an underlying dementia which is either undiagnosed, or not communicated to staff via medical records or other reports. Indicators of dementia may present during routine admission questions, or may even be the underlying reason for admission--such as in patients who may have forgotten to take their medications. Family members may also divulge concerns to hospital staff about forgetfulness and gradual changes in cognitive status that have become obvious over time.

Nurses can use a very brief and simple screening tool, called the Mini-Cog, to evaluate memory and executive function in their patients and to determine if further evaluation for dementia is indicated. While the tool is not diagnostic, it gathers useful information to inform the probability of an underlying dementia - information critical to determining care, addressing safety and improving outcomes. Equally important to patients and families, positive results in the screening provides an opportunity for the healthcare team to educate about the need to address a range of safety, legal and personal issues in order to improve quality of life and sustain independence following discharge and to coordinate follow-up diagnostic evaluation. This video organizes information in chaptered formats for viewers interested in specific aspects of the program.