Schizoaffective Disorder Comprehensive nursing paper example
DSM: Schizoaffective Disorder.
Instrument: The brief negative symptom scale (BNSS).
Article: The brief negative symptom scale in translation: A review of psychometric properties and beyond by Tatsumi et al. (2020).
Appropriateness for Dx: The BNSS is used to determine the existence and severity of schizophrenia’s significant negative symptoms, i.e., alogia, avolition, anhedonia, asociality, and blunted effect (Tatsumi et al., 2020). The scale is concise and feasible for large, multicenter trials, including clinical trials and laboratory-based studies. (Schizoaffective Disorder Comprehensive nursing paper example)
Response to Therapy/Treatment: BNSS has shown efficacy in assessing internal experience and behaviour in people with schizoaffective disorders (Tatsumi et al., 2020). The scale also distinguishes the consummatory and anticipatory aspects of anhedonia common in schizophrenia patients. Besides, the article validated the reliability of BNSS use in different cultures. Tatsumi et al. (2020) demonstrated that BNSS controls schizophrenic variables and uses simple language in a simple structure approved by patients and clinicians. (Schizoaffective Disorder Comprehensive nursing paper example)
Psychometrics: The BNSS is administered by a psychologist or a clinician and consists of 13 items. The 13 items are organized into six sub-scales constituting the primary symptoms of schizophrenia, i.e., the consensus domains (Tatsumi et al., 2020). The scale consists of an accompanying semi-structured interview guide, a score- and worksheets designed to standardize the use of the scale and attain a solid and consistent inter-rater reliability across languages. The study demonstrated that the scale provides a multidimensional assessment of schizophrenic symptoms, having excellent test-retest and internal reliability (Tatsumi et al., 2020). The BNSS scale also sensitive to changes and produces evidence of validity.(Schizoaffective Disorder Comprehensive nursing paper example)
Limitations: BNSS uses a patient’s primary symptoms to establish a diagnosis without integrating other significant aspects of an individual’s cognitive and social functioning (Tatsumi et al., 2020). This makes the scale restrictive since these factors also contribute to the key features that define schizoaffective disorders.
References
Tatsumi, K., Kirkpatrick, B., Strauss, G. P., & Opler, M. (2020). The brief negative symptom scale in translation: a review of psychometric properties and beyond. European Neuropsychopharmacology, 33, 36-44. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.euroneuro.2020.01.018