Patient Safety in Psychiatry-Case Vignette

Video Transcription

Video Summary

In this video, a 70-year-old man was placed on an involuntary hold due to his belief that his neighbors were electrocuting him. Despite no past psychiatric history, the patient's symptoms were attributed solely to psychosis. He was given a low-dose antipsychotic and his condition worsened, experiencing paralysis, urinary incontinence, and decreased sensation. After consulting neurology, the patient was found to have advanced spinal cord pathology, including brain metastases. The delay in diagnosis could have resulted in permanent neurological damage. The video highlights the importance of considering medical risks in older patients, not attributing all symptoms to a psychiatric disorder, proper medical clearance, attentiveness to patient reports, and utilizing standard diagnostic approaches. It emphasizes the impact of diagnostic errors and the need for open communication and teamwork in healthcare.

Keywords

70-year-old man

involuntary hold

psychosis

spinal cord pathology

diagnostic errors