The First Interview, Fourth Edition

This trusted practitioner resource and course text is grounded in James Morrison's experience with more than 15,000 mental health patients. Morrison provides a complete framework for interviewing adult patients about their current symptoms, personal and family history, mental status, behavioral risks, and other relevant issues. He offers guidance for selecting the best strategy for any clinical situation, building rapport, overcoming common challenges, and communicating findings. Appendices include a detailed semistructured interview and a self-assessment tool for interviewers, both with permission to photocopy. Purchasers also get access to a Web page where they can download and print the reproducible materials in a convenient 8 1/2" x 11" size.

New to This Edition
*Revised throughout for DSM-5.
*Updated resources and suggested readings.

See also Morrison's DSM-5® Made Easy, which explains DSM-5 diagnoses in clear language, illustrated with vivid case vignettes; Diagnosis Made Easier, Second Edition, which offers principles and decision trees for integrating diagnostic information from multiple sources; and The Mental Health Clinician's Workbook, which uses in-depth cases and carefully constructed exercises to build the reader's diagnostic skills.

James Morrison, MD, is Affiliate Professor of Psychiatry at Oregon Health and Science University in Portland. He has extensive experience in both the private and public sectors. With his acclaimed practical books--including, most recently, Diagnosis Made Easier, Second Edition, and DSM-5 Made Easy--Dr. Morrison has guided hundreds of thousands of mental health professionals and students through the complexities of clinical evaluation and diagnosis. His website (www.guilford.com/jm) offers additional discussion and resources related to psychiatric diagnosis and DSM-5.

Introduction: What Is Interviewing?
1. Openings and Introductions
2. Chief Complaint and Free Speech
3. Developing Rapport
4. Managing the Early Patient Interview
5. History of the Present Illness
6. Getting the Facts about the Present Illness
7. Interviewing about Feelings
8. Personal and Social History
9. Sensitive Subjects
10. Control of the Later Interview
11. Mental Status Exam I: Behavioral Aspects
12. Mental Status Exam II: Cognitive Aspects
13. Signs and Symptoms in Areas of Clinical Interest
14. Closure
15. Interviewing Informants
16. Meeting Resistance
17. Special or Challenging Patient Behaviors and Issues
18. Diagnosis and Recommendations
19. Sharing Your Findings with the Patient
20. Communicating Your Findings to Others
21. Troubleshooting Your Interview
Appendix A. Summary of the Initial Interview
Appendix B. Descriptions of Selected Disorders.
Appendix C. Sample Interview, Written Report, and Formulation
Appendix D. A Semistructured Interview
Appendix E. Assessing Your Interview
Appendix F. Bibliography and Recommended Reading