Mental State Examination

The Mental State Examination (MSE) is a structure for assessing and recording a patients' presentation, demeanour and state of mind at the time of interview. A patients mental state changes over time and the MSE is often repeated and compared. Changes in mental state are important in monitoring and adjusting management of patients.

Capturing the MSE in an accurate readable form takes practice. Remember that you need to be able to word something that is readable by other healthcare professionals working with the patient.

When documenting the MSE it may be helpful to just pen down a few words 'short hand' to convey what you observe and later write up the description. In some settings a quick write up is imperative (e.g. a suicidal patient in A&E) The tutorials here demonstrate examples of both being done.

Appearance and Behaviour

Mood and Affect

Speech

Thoughts

Perceptions

Cognitive Function

Insight

The MSE is divided into the headings shown above. You may find these vary slightly depending on which sources you look at however the structure used on this site follows that described in most undergraduate textbooks of psychiatry.