Related Experiment Videos
"Telepsychometry": a remote psychometry consultation in clinical gerontology: preliminary study
C Montani1, N Billaud, P Couturier
1L12G, Laboratoire Inter Universitaire de Gérontologie de Grenoble, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire, France.
Summary
Remote psychometric consultations are feasible for elderly patients, but attention deficits due to hearing loss may impact performance on cognitive tests like the Mini-Mental Status Examination (MMSE) and Clock Face Test (CFT).
Area of Science:
- Gerontology
- Clinical Psychology
- Telehealth
Background:
- Elderly patients often require specialized psychological assessments.
- Remote consultations offer a potential solution for accessing care, especially for those with mobility issues.
- Assessing the efficacy of telehealth for psychometric evaluations in older adults is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the clinical feasibility of conducting remote psychometric consultations with elderly patients.
- To compare the performance of elderly patients in remote versus standard consultations.
Main Methods:
- A comparative study involving 10 elderly patients (average age 87) undergoing remote and standard consultations.
- Psychometric assessments included the Mini-Mental Status Examination (MMSE) and Clock Face Test (CFT).
- Remote consultations utilized video conferencing equipment, with the clinician controlling the camera remotely.
Main Results:
- Patients demonstrated significantly decreased performance on both the MMSE (p = 0.008) and CFT (p = 0.006) during remote consultations compared to standard ones.
- Physiologic hearing loss was identified as a potential factor contributing to reduced attention during remote assessments.
Conclusions:
- Remote psychometric consultation is a viable method for psychological examination of elderly individuals.
- Addressing communication challenges, particularly those related to hearing impairment, is essential for successful remote assessments.