DIRECTED CLINICAL INTERVIEW
Ancillary tests may be needed, depending on the individual circumstances, including history from therapists or other caregivers, physical assessment, laboratory evaluation and possibly even neuroimaging studies. These tests may all help clarify whether the current level of functioning and, possibly capacity, is likely to improve. Table 11,4–6 outlines specific patient abilities to be assessed along with suggested questions to assess each ability during a directed clinical interview. After these abilities are assessed, a general mental status examination also must be performed to determine whether any serious psychopathologic factors may be unduly influencing patient thinking. The clinician's final assessment of whether a patient has medical decision-making capacity depends on whether the clinician believes that the patient is free of significant psychopathologic-impaired thinking and possesses sufficient abilities to make the specific decision in question.