Basic Terminology

A 72-year-old female patient is brought to the emergency department by her family, with the chief complaint of “confusion.” At baseline, the patient’s mobility is moderately limited due to severe osteoarthritis of both knees, but she can function primarily independently with the assistance of a walker. She resides independently in a senior apartment complex. When she did not arrive for community breakfast this morning nor respond to telephone calls by the family, the staff used a key to enter her apartment and found the patient seated on the sofa. She was awake, but did not respond appropriately to questions. Her undergarments were soaked in urine. On arrival to the emergency department, the patient’s confusion continued. She was not cooperative with history and was intermittently verbally aggressive with the ER staff.

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