Mental state examination in a GP surgery
PLAB 2 practice station
Mental health · 1 min to read · 8 min to perform
Miss Imogen Hartley, aged 34, a primary school teaching assistant, has come because her sister was worried about her.
Imogen HartleyHello. My sister made me come. I don't really know what I'm doing here.
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You are a doctor in a GP surgery. Miss Imogen Hartley, aged 34, a primary school teaching assistant, has come because her sister was worried about her. She is alone. Carry out a mental state examination by talking with her and observing her. You may ask the examiner for any observation you would make by looking. Then summarise your findings to the examiner and say what you think the immediate management should be. The examiner will not take part in the conversation with the patient.
What this station tests
- Ask directly about suicidal thoughts, plans and intent: it does not increase risk.
- Describe what you observe, using the standard headings, as well as what the patient says.
- Separate fleeting thoughts from a plan with intent, say how you see her risk now, and remember it can change.
- Agree a concrete follow-up and crisis route before she leaves.
Sources for the clinical content
- NICE NG222: Depression in adults: treatment and management
- NICE NG225: Self-harm: assessment, management and preventing recurrence
An original practice scenario with invented patients. Not an exam question.