mental health AIDS

Spring 2006 Newsletter / Volume 7, Issue 3

HIV Assessment News

Psychiatric Assessment

Pence et al. (2005) present a validation study conducted on the 16-item Substance Abuse and Mental Illness Symptoms Screener (SAMISS), a brief screening instrument designed specifically for use in settings that serve persons living with HIV/AIDS. In comparisons between scores achieved by consecutive consenting clinic attendees on the substance abuse module (n = 148) and the mental illness module (n = 143) of the SAMISS and on a reference standard diagnostic tool (the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV or SCID), "the SAMISS demonstrated high sensitivity and moderate specificity for both [substance abuse] and [mental illness]. Due to its brevity, the SAMISS can be feasibly integrated into routine care in busy clinical settings. The instrument's high sensitivity makes it an effective universal, first-line screening instrument. Because of its moderate specificity, patients who screen positive will require a more rigorous psychiatric evaluation to confirm the presence of a diagnosis" (p. 439). Importantly, screening questions focus on substance use, mood, and anxiety disorders; for this reason, "[t]he SAMISS is unlikely to be effective in identifying psychotic or personality disorders" (p. 441)

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