Screening

The NSW Agency for Clinical Innovation has a resources page with screening and assessment tools to help identify cognitive impairment, dementia, and delirium in older people.

See pages 52-56 of the National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards User guide for health service organisations providing care for patients with cognitive impairment or at risk of delirium for information on Action 5.7 Screening and assessment processes, as they relate to cognitive  impairment and identifying delirium.

The Victorian Department of Health’s Older People in Hospital website provides information on common cognitive screening tools including the Rowland Universal Dementia Assessment Scale (RUDAS) and the Kimberley Indigenous Cognitive Assessment (KICA).

4AT is a screening tool for both delirium and cognitive impairment that is free to download and use. The months of the year backward test and the 4-item Abbreviated Mental Test, which are brief tests for cognitive impairment, are also incorporated.

This video from the Confused Hospitalised Older Person’s (CHOPS) Program explains the importance of finding out about a person’s cognition and doing that through cognitive screening to establish a baseline.

A video showing importance of screening for cognitive impairment.

See pages 18-20 of A better way to care – safe and high-quality care for patients with cognitive impairment or at risk of delirium in acute health services (Second edition).