Preparation Tool
Mnemonics such as SIG:E CAPS, CAGE, and WWHHHHIMPS help professionals and trainees recall important lists such as depression criteria, alcoholism screening questions, and life-threatening factors for delirium (Caplan & Stern, 2008). The effectiveness of mnemonics is based on the idea that groups of information are easier to remember than individual pieces of information. The ability to recall diagnostic criteria is useful in clinical practice, research, board exams, and insurance reimbursement, though not everyone is a fan of mnemonics. As such, tools for remembering diagnostic criteria have their place in psychiatric practice and teaching (Caplan & Stern, 2008). New information is temporarily stored in working memory, allowing encoding and eventual retention. Decisions and planning for the future are guided by working memory, which is closely related to attention. Based on functional MRI, positron emission tomography, and neurocognitive assessment,18-21 working memory tasks stimulate the prefrontal cortex and brain regions associated with verbal and visuospatial memory. According to the theory, the hippocampus can quickly absorb new knowledge, which is then consolidated and permanently stored in the prefrontal cortex (Caplan & Stern, 2008). continue…